


Always (in the same place)

by rosyemperor



Category: Wanna One
Genre: Alternate Universe - Percy Jackson Fusion, M/M, calypso!ong
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-04-24 15:34:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 41,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14358411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosyemperor/pseuds/rosyemperor
Summary: No man finds Ogygia twice, and still...





	Always (in the same place)

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!  
> First of all, I have to thank the prompter for sending such a beautiful prompt, I hope you like what I did with it.  
> Secondly, thank to the mods who were so kind ot me and let me join in late.  
> Thirdly, g and m, thank you for reading through every update and living my mental breakdowns. You both know how much I suffered and enjoyed writing all 41k words of this (pheeeew! my longest work ever!)  
> Last but not least, thank you to whoever is reading this, I hope you like the story you're about to read... and long live onghwang ♥

_preface_

 

 

MINHYUN.

 

 

Minhyun was tired of how much the plane was shaking. He knew it was actually quite irrational of him to be afraid of the aircraft falling down, after all there were way more car accidents than plane ones, but still… Another quiver took the plane by storm, and he was growing uneasy. From his seat, he couldn’t take a look outside the tiny windows, just to calm himself, so he stood up and made his way to the bathroom, hoping to catch a glimpse of the outside on his way there.

Why wasn’t he sent with a Zeus’ descendant, was a matter that escaped Minhyun’s grasp. It was a mission through air, therefore, the help of someone with a degree of control over air currents like, let’s say, aerokinetic demigods, would be more than useful. However, the child of Athena was considered a master of all aces, so whenever they didn’t know what could be waiting for them, they sent Minhyun in and hoped for the best. Up until then, they hadn’t been disappointed.

The jet shook one more time, and the raven-haired had to cling onto the walls in order to remain standing even when his legs wobbled due to the force of the quake. Deciding he would probably be safer if he stayed in his chair (really, how was he allowed to stand up in the first place?), he turned around and tried to make his way back. The whole structure shook a few more times until Minhyun was back at his place. He never sat, though, because suddenly, there were two delicate but strong hands holding him from behind.

He fought himself free from the embrace, only to be faced with the flight attendant’s sweet face. Her eyes, nonetheless, showed something that scared Minhyun. They seemed to light on fire, and the air was definitely hotter. That caused him to search his brain over and over attempting to determine the monster (because there was no one she wasn’t a monster) he was fighting. Beautiful monsters, beautiful monsters… he repeated, trying to hit upon the creature in his brain’s index. Pretty, sexy, fire. He was doomed when he realised he had been caught by an Empousa.

If the hotness of the room was to be taken as indication, this Empousa wanted to go into true form, and that would be Minhyun’s end. Already imagining the freak’s teeth on his immaculate neck (Empousai were the Greek version of vampires, he had learned a long time ago), he snapped out of his sudden shock and quickly jumped back, noticing how close she was.

Thinking quick, he took his dagger from his back pocket. A demigod should never be unarmed, except maybe inside the Camp, and even there, Hwang Minhyun always carried some weaponry with him. He was not a child of Ares, but Athena’s children could be as war-oriented. Besides, his mother had gifted him the dagger he held in his hand and told him he was going to need it, sadly, she never told him what _for_. It was since then that Minhyun brought the sapphire embroidered blade with him at all times and places.

The hostess looked at him with a smug on her face, and called for his attention with various sounds which barely resembled a laugh. He felt his hot blood reaching every part of his body as he threw himself against the woman—maybe not his best idea, but definitely the right way to catch her off guard—and hoping she would at least be a bit thrown off by his force. To his pleasure, the Empousa staggered, which gave him enough time for Minhyun to put the blade through what he remembered was the heart.

Not enough to kill her, seeing as she just took the dagger out and threw it across the tiny hallway. It fell behind the hero, and he debated whether to throw himself for the dagger or to fight the monster head on. Minhyun opted for the former, and caught the weapon in his hands second before he felt nails digging on his neck, causing a cry to leave his body.

No one in the whole structure seemed to notice anything, and Minhyun wondered if they were conscious. It’d better if they weren’t, definitely, because that way the risk of injuring themselves was less. He had better ride first class, it was _secluded_ and people wouldn’t be exposed to the risk of being next to a demigod. He grunted while trying to free himself from the Empousa, but her hold was only growing stronger, until she had put Minhyun on his knees. With all he had, he threw his head back. The creature was hazy because of the blow, and he crawled on the opposite direction. There was not much he could do, hanging on the air, the rest of his weaponry back with the luggage and no one there to help him but he was not giving up on his life.

The air hostess/monster recovered rapidly, which honestly wasn’t an aid to Minhyun at all. Muttering curses under his breath, he managed to stand up. He still had half of the hallway on his back, so he figured he could make a run and hide on the pilot’s cabin until he figured out what to do. However, the fiend had another thing in mind, and before he could even start running she flew rather than ran towards him, stopping him from reaching the cubicle. Her eyes were trying to look into Minhyun’s, but he knew better than to look into them. Now, he would have to fight with his eyes closed; which was just great, nothing better!

His fist aimed for her face, but couldn’t quite hit her so he tried again and again. At this point, the Empousa was just laughing at him. Then, he figured out a way to save himself, possibly. It was a crazy idea, but it was all he had.

The flight he was currently in was mostly above water and, judging by the windows, water was still under him. He had to jump. He was no son of Poseidon, but maybe, if he prayed enough, the sea would save him too. With that in mind, he retreated, until his back was pressed against the door. He let the Empousa believe she had him down, and then, he forced the door open.

It wasn’t easy, to override the whole door’s mechanism with only one hand and a dagger, but he was Hwang Minhyun, and everyone looked up to him. Not twenty seconds later, both the hero and the monster were flying out of the plane. As his body was carried by the winds and gravity pulled him down, he prayed. He prayed for Zeus to change the winds and lessen the fall, for Poseidon to make him a water bed so it wouldn’t hurt when his frame hit the sea. He prayed for his mother so he could figure something out. He prayed to Hephaestus, to Ares, to Aphrodite. It didn’t matter at all, because the sea took him on its embrace and the world went black.

 

 

 

SEONGWOO.

 

It had been a while since the last time someone—mortal—had stopped at Ogygya, and he didn’t know if he should feel relieved or furious. Not having any kind of interaction with people whose ego wasn’t as high as giant was kind of awful, but then again, experiencing the warmth that came from having someone there only to be quickly stripped off it… That wasn’t pretty, either. So Seongwoo just let the days pass, doing nothing and everything around the island, he lived on a stunning place after all.

The green palm trees were moved by the soft breeze of the perpetual summer of Ogygya, and it was kind of relaxing (but monotonous, as was everything else). He figured people would be stunned if they set foot on his home: the Sun always shone bright on the sky, and during night time the stars glistened on the firmament with such light it gave the island a soft blue glow. The moon reflected on the sea like it was a perfect water mirror, and the satellite draws enough radiance from the flaring luminary to give shadows. During the day, the chirping of birds was audible, as well as some other animals, if you knew where to look. Arrived dusk, whilst everything slept, the running water was the only sound filling the air.

Seongwoo laid down on the sand for the umpteenth time in his whole existence. At least he had a nice prison.

 

* * *

 

 

_first act: Ogygia._

 

 

MINHYUN (I)

 

His body had fell into the water and he had drowned, he knew that much. The demigod could _feel_ the arms of the depths pulling him down, and how there was a moment he could no longer draw breath. He remembers watching the Empousa drowning as well, faster than him, probably due to their fire nature. The world had disappeared at some point, because his sight was failing him. And still.

Still, he was alive now. Someone was pressing on his chest, causing his whole body to jolt and eject large quantities of water. Minhyun sensed as his lungs emptying themselves of the liquid that didn’t belong there until he could draw breath again. He took various mouthfuls of air, so rapidly it hurt his windpipe but it didn’t matter. Pain meant he was alive. He was alive, breathing and in a hurry. His campmates waited for him, and they were probably worried out of their minds, because he was supposed to contact them via Iris once he reached his destination. Except, he didn’t reach it and he should’ve done it hours ago (at best, because he had no idea how long he had been out).

Not minding the person that had brought him back to life, he stood up so quickly a wave of dizziness hit him almost causing him to fall flatly on the sand. The first thing he realised once he recovered was the hotness. Given that it was February such hotness was definitely not to be expected and he was wearing layers and layers of clothing that were now damped and hugging his figure tightly. So, he took them out one by one until he was in the middle of an unknown beach with an unknown boy in nothing but his tank-top-converted-undershirt and his pants. Not very clever of him, but his mind was kind of clogged by recent events like dying.

The only other person around coughed in a way to get his attention and it was then that Minhyun took full conscience of the situation. He had stranded on an island after jumping from a moving plane while he fought a monster. And it made no sense because he was flying above a closed sea (well, it was technically an endorheic lake, but he was not annoying enough to go around calling it that) that was not big enough to hold a whole island inside. Even less to have had developed a clime of its own. Maybe he was actually dead, but his lungs were still on fire after being cleansed to remind him he was very much alive, even if he had no idea where the fork was he.

Minhyun turned around, awkwardly laying his hand on top of his noble parts, as if he was going to do anything about anything, the tips of his ears threatening to explode from the blood rushed to them. The other just looked at him, unimpressed, and contrary to what the demigod might’ve thought, it made it all _worse_. The raven-haired took a deep breath and composed himself.

“Good afternoon, I need to get out of here.”

The boy in front of him just laughed, the tips of his mouth curling upwards, but not enough for his eyes to close even a little. His cheeks seemed to puff a little and it should’ve been a cute sight, except it was kind of intimidating.

“Well, fine man, don’t we all!”

Big brown eyes stared into Minhyun’s slightly darker ones, and they spoke of punishment, of burden, of boredom, of repudiation. The son of Athena gulped down before the smaller one continued.

“But it is not me you have to ask for it.”

Then, he shrugged his shoulders, leaving Minhyun confused and slightly mad, pursed lips and all. So, he reached for the other’s arm and grasped it, barely, making him turn around with a raised brow.

“Could you _please_ not be so cryptic? I’m kind of in a hurry because people _need_ me and I _have to_ … do some really important stuff. So, you better let me out or help me out or at least give me some information instead of acting like you’re some kind of I don’t know oracle who doesn’t know how to give a full answer. Please?”

The last word was added in because halfway through his speech Minhyun realised that maybe that was not the right way to address someone when you’re asking for help. But the guy was an asshole so far, Minhyun could tell by the three and a half words he had uttered for the entirety of the ten minutes they had been together and by the way he _moved_ as if he was some kind of deity. And if he resulted being a very powerful existence then bad luck.

He stood there, looking at the brown-haired man in silence, arms crossed on his chest and eyes piercing into the boy’s frame (not his face, because honestly, he was kind of embarrassed for acting so highly). He was wearing white summery clothes, namely a short-sleeved shirt the colour of the sand under them, embroidered with some goldish patterns and combined with same coloured pants Minhyun couldn’t very well make out their fabric. He wore nothing else, not a hat to protect from the Sun, or sunglasses, or anything, not even the bare basics like a watch (a watch, for Athena’s sake!). He was curious, Minhyun thought.

“Just.” The white-wearing closed the space between them, lifting just one finger to Minhyun’s face. “Who,” he raised his voice at this, truthfully scaring Minhyun, “do you think you are to come here and talk to me like that?”

Admittedly, it hadn’t been Minhyun’s brightest moment, but he could always blame it on being dead for a while, probably. He wasn’t sure if the other would take that as an excuse, which led him to the conclusion that he had to apologise. It’s not that he was opposed to apologising but, in all honesty, he had no idea _how_ to do that for one reason: he was Hwang Minhyun and he could do no wrong. Which translated into: even if Hwang Minhyun made the biggest mistake ever, he was not going to be held accountable for it because he had saved everyone more times that he could count. Even the Gods loved him, possibly. After all, he had been their ace in the latest war against Hecate and some other minor gods who, convinced by Kronos had taken it upon them to wipe out the entirety of their and the whole Pantheon’s offspring—so, Half-blood Camp.

They had ended up winning said war, but the aftermath was still dangerous. The remnants of their doings were very much harmful and hazardous to demigods. For example, no one could walk into Hecate’s cabin without ending up under a mind-controlling spell that, no matter if she no longer wanted them dead, caused the kids to turn on each other. Said spell was Minhyun’s mission this time: Hecate had put the counter-spell somewhere near them but far enough they had to take a plane to get to it, and had protected it in ways she couldn’t even remember. All she had recognised was that the traps could not be overcome by a team, because she was not a team player so she would never favour teamwork. That left the Camp counsel with one choice, and if they could only send one or two people, there was no other option than Hwang Minhyun.

As if he hadn’t gone through enough already. But he had promised to fulfil the mission and, seeing he hadn’t died after fighting a whole Empousa by himself with only a dagger, he still had to carry on with that. All of that resulted in Hwang Minhyun’s first apology.

“I shouldn’t have acted like that, I guess, so, I suppose I’m sorry. I still need to get out and I still need your help, so I’m not taking that part back.”

Minhyun discovered he was disastrous at saying sorry.

 

 

SEONGWOO (I)

 

 

No less than 10 hours ago, Seongwoo had lain on the white sand of Ogygya, eyes fixated on the stars that were never the same, unlike his life. He had fallen asleep like many days before, not needing to cover himself of the coldness, for it didn’t exist. The familiarity of the island wearing him off day by day, and he was tired.

Then, 10 hours later, Seongwoo woke up, shook his hands off the sand he had gotten on them during the night and rubbed his eyes. He stood up, taking a big gulp of air and made his way to the water, splashing the salty liquid on his face being careful enough not to hurt his eyes. After that, having nothing to do except maybe have some kind of breakfast, he turned around and his orbs got fixated on a body.

Upon his pristine shore, lied a figure. It didn’t move except for the faint up-and-down of his chest drawing breath, but even that was barely noticeable, and it was growing shorter. So Seongwoo, acting as everyone would, ran towards the body. When he was close enough, he could make up that it was a boy, completely soaking, his hair plastered to his face, his (excessive amount of) clothes basically glued to his body and a breathing that was slowly fading. His slightly upwards eyes were closed, but the boy didn’t look peaceful at all, instead his elegant face displayed something akin to pain and hurtful concern. His lips were slightly opened, and Seongwoo guessed, after checking that no inhalation was being made by his high and protruding nose, that whatever little air he was getting it was through his mouth. So, he carefully opened it further to see if it helped, but it didn’t.

Judging by the water all over his body and Seongwoo’s previous experiences of people reaching his island, the boy had, almost surely, drowned. Therefore, the titan did the only thing he could think about and pressed on the boy’s chest over and over, until large bodies of water were ejected and he was finally breathing, his chest moving up and down rapidly. After no more than ten seconds, the raven-haired opened his eyes.

The first thing Seongwoo noticed was the spark he had inside them; it was distinctive, fiery, consuming. The guy shone from the inside, the titan guessed, he was probably clever but stubborn as a mule, resolute but childish. Maybe he was also quite moony, because he stood up without even noticing Seongwoo’s presence and he was _undressing himself_ in front of Seongwoo’s eyes.

Quite flustered and not knowing how to call for the other’s attention without maybe giving him a heart attack (not that he cared, but he hadn’t just saved a life to end it), he coughed. Seongwoo was still kneeling next to where the other had been laying, and he had his eyes fixated on the boy’s frame. Quite tall and proportioned he was not easy to ignore, especially while clothes had flown out of his head and legs leaving him in undergarments which heightened _everything_ because they were soaking wet.

The taller one’s eyes met his, finally acknowledging his presence and Seongwoo was so curious about him. The man’s hand had quickly flown to cover himself, like they could conceal much and Seongwoo wanted to laugh. Instead, he opted to look unimpressed as if he wasn’t seeing more than he had asked for. He could feel the other’s wish to _just die right then_. It was honestly so funny.

Human interaction was fascinating because of its ever-changing nature. The last time he spoke to a mortal, said mortal (or semi mortal, because he was, after all, a demigod) had thanked him as soon as he had noticed what had happened, and had taken Seongwoo’s hand in his so, so softly, making his heart flutter. Seongwoo had been sold, and he wished he hadn’t been. He still was, a bit, sadly, Daniel’s memory never leaving his mind.

It had been what? A few years? He guessed that was about it. The situation had been so alike but so different at the same time. A half-dead boy had appeared on his shore, except this one was wearing a whole armour on him, and wasn’t soaking wet. Whereas the one in front of him had water everywhere, Daniel had been covered in bruises and battle wounds, one way deeper than the others. Seongwoo had run towards him, taking off his armour to tend to his injuries. He had gathered herbs and unguents from all around the island, as well as clean water to scrub the body and properly treat him. Almost an hour later and with the help of a strong smelling burning branch, the demigod opened his eyes.

The titan had thought he looked like a lost puppy, his orbs scanning the whole place until finally laying on him. Quickly, the fighter’s big hands engulfed his, and they were unexpectedly warm. He had thanked him, and asked for help to stand up. He introduced himself as Kang Daniel, son of Poseidon, and he told him about wars, about gods gone crazy, about his friends. He spoke with nostalgia, but it was tinted with uncertainty, because Daniel had not known if he wanted to go back. Daniel told him about the novelties of the world Seongwoo had once roamed, and he had been fascinated.

They had spent many days in the island, doing the same things the titan had done many times, except he was actually enjoying them that time. The stars seemed brighter as they gazed at them night after night, the chestnut-haired laying into Daniel’s shoulder while the latter smiled at him. Seongwoo remembered thinking that was paradise.

The man in front of him right now was nothing like Daniel except for the height and when he opened his mouth, Seongwoo was stunted. “Good afternoon, I need to get out of here,” the man had said, which was funny because it was such an official greeting pronounced with a feeling close to authoritarian. The titan might as well laugh the absurdity off.

“Well, fine man, don’t we all!”

Seongwoo retorted in a wry, sarcastic tone because, well, it was the bitter truth after all. The two of them were the only people on the island, which made them “all”. The annoying one wanted to leave, and Seongwoo wished to get out as well, the main difference being that the other actually had a chance. He didn’t know (yet) the reason why the other was sent into Ogygya instead of letting him die, but if he was saved by the, oh, so mighty, so wise, Gods, it was for a cause.

“But it is not me you have to ask for it,” declared Seongwoo, making sure to imprint just enough sassiness into it because, let’s face it, he was salty he couldn’t leave and he was _mad_ he had just saved a life only to be welcomed by demands and not even a thank you. What a lack of manners!

It was nothing compared to what the other articulated next. As if he had some kind of power or reigned over Seongwoo, he demanded to be answered properly, clearly discontented with the way the titan was answering his question. Then, he proceeded to boast about his greatness and importance, about which Seongwoo couldn’t care less and made him feel the urge to put a fist in his mouth. To top it off, he went all in and insulted Seongwoo, who had just stopped his impending death, not even a whole minute into their first conversation. The true ending of the paragraph was a dubious please that sounded more of a joke than an actual beg to the titan’s ears and caused him to snap at the self-righteous boy.

“Just who do you think you are to come here and talk to me like that?”

Was he educated on the Tartarus? Seongwoo thought, judging from the way the other talked to him without even bothering to introduce himself. To say he was annoyed was an understatement. The fact that the raven-haired took about two minutes to come up with a half-assed excuse worsened his state.

“You are not used to not having the world kissing the ground you step on, are you?” Disdain imprinted into every word, Seongwoo spat them to the other. Hurt crossed the dark-haired’s eyes for a second, only to be quickly replaced by a fiery anger that almost caused his body to jolt and the titan felt in his bone for the first time the idiomatic “if looks could kill”. But he was not backing down, and corresponded the gaze with one equally as abrasive.

Maybe he had hit a soft spot, because the other didn’t even bother to answer, remaining quiet instead, still staring into Seongwoo’s eyes as if he could dismantle him. In the end, he shook his head.

“Look, I want to get out and I bet you want to be left alone so why not take advantage on our superposing interests?”

There was a point he had made there, the titan admitted. Truth be told, he had no real jurisdiction on the island, so he could not make him leave as much as he wanted him out. And really, he wanted him gone because those minutes together had already been worse than solitude.

Seongwoo guessed that were still all kinds of people and sometimes you clicked and sometimes you didn’t. He had no idea how many stupid people there were, but damned be the gods that decided to send one there.

“What should I call you, by the way?” The other said, disrupting his train of thought. He realised he had his sight fixated on the horizon, so he shifted to look at the other, no expression on his face.

“Seongwoo. Can’t say it is a pleasure.”

The boy chuckled (chuckled!). “I’m Minhyun. Thank you for saving my life, by the way, and now please be useful.”

The boy—Minhyun—was insufferable and quite probably thought too highly of himself. He spoke as if the world owed him something, and maybe his world did but Seongwoo sure didn’t. That resulted in a growing dislike on his behalf, and if Minhyun’s attitude was anything to go by, it was mutual.

Seongwoo was somewhat thankful he hadn’t been graced by the gods with another charming hero who would steal his heart, though, because he had had enough. His past experiences with the heroes that ended up on his coastline were enough sorrow for two lives and then more. How Doyeon, Zeus’ daughter had used him and his hospitality still ached, even if all of that happened centuries ago. Thing is, Daniel had been worse because that time Seongwoo had let down all the barriers he took his time in building, because Daniel had been genuine and good. Daniel was worse because, in the end, all what happened was that Seongwoo wasn’t enough.

So, looking at Minhyun, he was relieved. The boy was _handsome_ , there was no denying that, but he didn’t own a single ounce of the charm Doyeon exuded nor that adorable quality to him like Daniel. He was stern, cold, built like a god, and Seongwoo knew enough about Gods to not like them a bit. For once, he was safe.

Sure, he would’ve appreciated some kind of nice company except he just knew no matter how strong and closed he said his heart was, it wasn’t, not truly. He was weak for kindness and sweet words that made him feel special and melt no matter how hard he tried. With a sigh he realised that what he truly wanted was someone who could stay, even though he knew no one ever would because who would choose to trap themselves in a cell.

Minhyun had been humming along to some unknown melody for a while now, until Seongwoo’s focus shifted back to him, looking at the boy with his eyebrows raised.

“And who exactly are you, Minhyun?”

Maybe he hadn’t been expecting that, judging by how he seemed taken aback for a second. The titan had decided that, if he wanted the other to leave, he had to help him because he seemed clueless, and he couldn’t do that without some background info.

“Hwang Minhyun.” He stopped, passing one hand through his hair, which still had sand on it, “Son of Athena.”

So, he was a hero, just as everyone else. Seongwoo would’ve been greatly surprised if it had been any other way, really. No mortal ever set foot on Ogygya (well, only two other earthly beings had set foot on Ogygya, so it wasn’t hard for it to be a 100% of heroes), probably the Gods didn’t think them worthy. Maybe it was another way of punishing Seongwoo, because only heroes would be able to decline immortality in order to pursue greatness.

The brunet’s mind derailed again on why exactly he was there, curiosity growing bigger. Athena’s descendants weren’t usually the type to die easily, being the smartest of the bunch and all that, nor were they usually big heroes like namely Zeus’ and Poseidon’s offspring who tended to jump in the middle of the battle because they were oh, so powerful. Athena’s children stood behind the scenes, laying the whole battle plan and making sure they won without having to get too involved. Perchance, Minhyun was an exception.

“Well, Hwang Minhyun, why don’t you just call your mother?”

The demigod’s eyes threatened to get out of his sacks, and his mouth made the most perfect “O” form Seongwoo had ever witnessed. Then, he proceeded to hit his head with his right hand, laying the left one on his hips and bending one of his knees. He sighed, and let his right hand roll off his face until it was hanging lifeless to his body. He was muttering something under his breath, and it sounded along the lines of ‘I am truly the dumbest out of the clever’ and ‘why didn’t _I_ think about that on my own’. Seongwoo laughed at him.

A while after, Minhyun took a deep breath and smiled at him; Seongwoo had to admit his smile was appealing. The tips of his lips crooked a bit and he showed all of his bright perfectly aligned white teeth. His eyes closed a bit, though unevenly. And it wasn’t the kind of smile to make a face more beautiful; instead, his smile seemed to _alter_ his appearance completely, giving the boy another light. Seongwoo had to take his eyes away, almost missing the way Minhyun said goodbye and turned around, going into the palm trees.

Seongwoo stayed behind, in his beach and hoped it worked just so he wouldn’t have to deal with the demanding boy. He didn’t pray to Athena, because he knew better than to ask the Gods for a favour.

 

 

MINHYUN (II)

 

Finally, the other—Seongwoo, he had said—decided to be useful and give him the answer. In all honesty, it was an easy one. Which meant Minhyun was _dumber_ than he had let himself admit for years and should’ve come up with the solution as soon as the annoying inhabitant of the island uttered that clue. Instead, he really had to act stuck-up, proud and ill-mannered when he was nothing like that. He felt ashamed, really. A bit hurt as well, because the other had rightfully attacked him, hitting some of his biggest insecurities.

Sure, he felt entitled to things sometimes (most of the time) and he had gotten used to everyone in the camp praising every little thing he did. It was so that way that he was afraid he had forgotten how to act when someone didn’t automatically want to please him. Finding out he had indeed become something he didn’t want to be was both upsetting and saddening.

But it wasn’t Seongwoo’s fault, which meant Minhyun had to get his shit together and act way kindlier towards the boy who had saved his life for no other reason than what? Complete altruism? He didn’t know, nor had he given it any thought until right that second. He’d asked the other later, even if he didn’t seem too fond of his company.

Anyway, with the knowledge of having to contact him mother, Minhyun focused his sight on the man, smiling widely and sincerely. The other’s eyes seemed to pierce through his face, and he felt somewhat intimidated. Had he been so infuriating he had gotten someone to hate him in less than an hour? Disappointed, he turned around and waved goodbye.

Minhyun had absolutely no idea on how to move around the island, important fact he would’ve done good on remembering before leaving the shore and Seongwoo in it. It shouldn’t be too hard to go back to the beach once he found a tranquil spot if he only walked in a straight line and made no turns at all. However, said mission proved itself to be way more difficult than expected due to the intricate locations of the trees and the numerous animal noises.

Minhyun had thought he had woken up in a quiet place, if he took after the beach, conversely, there was noise _everywhere_ or so it seemed for him. He had learned some time ago that the only way for his mind to reach his mother was complete and absolute silence. Everyone had their own way, for example, Juhyun needed a goldened surface—reason why she always had a miniature of her gilded battle shield—Nayoung used to need to lay on a marble floor—luckily, she evolved into needing just something with marble, like her custom-made necklace. For Minhyun, it was stillness. The hush allowed him to concentrate enough to reach the level where his mind connected with that of her mother.

Unluckily right now, he found his surroundings to be too loud, too vivid, too much. Exasperated and no longer minding getting lost, he kept on walking, delving deeper and deeper into the greenery. He had a great orientation sense, anyway.

Nearly five minutes after, his feet had taken him to a clearing. The Sun shone brightly upon his head, even hotter than before, its shimmering light making the world so clear it even looked blurred, out of a painting. Strangely enough, nothing could be heard from there, and Minhyun wondered just _how_ far from the shore he was. It didn’t matter though, because once he reached his mother he was leaving.

Yet, and despite his best efforts, she wasn’t coming through. He concentrated as much as he could – he even kneeled and clasped his hands together despite never having seen anyone do that. Everything was to no avail, because Athena never came. Hopeless, he laid on the soil and started calling her out loud.

“Mooooooooooooooooooooooom.”

He dragged the word for as long as he could, thinking that maybe it could make some kind of chance, as it a constant vocal repetition was going to catch her attention instead of making him look 5 years old.

“I know I’ve asked you for a lot of things lately, one of them being saving my life, which, by the way, I don’t know if _you_ did, but thanks just in case; if it wasn’t you, thanks to whoever did, you the boss.” He took a big breath, and rolled. Now he was looking at the grass under him, so green it almost hurt his eyes. Thankfully, no bugs were roaming it; that would’ve been a disaster.

“Anyway, mom, I know you monitored the war all along, so I know you know Hecate hid the counter-spell and I was appointed to return it. I also know, or at least highly hope, that you love your children and don’t want us dead, which could honestly happen.” Then, Minhyun laughed a bit. “Yeah, I know kids like for example Daehwi don’t seem all that intimidating but, I promise you, they’re dangerous. And specially Daehwi, but he’s doing his best to stay away from his cabin and keeping everyone out as well. Thing is, the spell was meant to explode at some point, and then everyone would turn on everyone.”

A chill went down his spine just by imagining, all of his friends losing consciousness of who they are and turning on each other, friends against friends, family against family. Shaking his head, he fought the tears that were pooling in his eyes. “The thing is, I really, _really_ need to go back, mom. Please help me.”

A resigned sigh escaped his lips before resting his head on the pasture as well, closing his eyes and letting the daytime star caress his body with its rays.

How long had he been in the island? If the position of the Sun was anything to go by—and hoping it followed the same pattern it did back home—it hadn’t been long. However, he had no idea how long it had been since he left the Camp. His mind concluded that not much because, so far, he could not breathe the oxygen off the water and he had woken up completely soaked. Nevertheless, it was possibly enough time for the Camp to worry about the lack of communication. There was one perk though, the possibility of the Camp sending something resembling a team to extract the amulet in which the counter-spell hid due to Minhyun taking too long. He hoped that was the case, because his mind was running crazy over what would happen if the enchantment broke free before the ornament arrived.

The son of Athena was a worry first kind of guy, contrary of what one would expect. Yes, he was clever, resolute, and great with weaponry; he had outstanding strategy, he was afraid of spiders and sadly didn’t forget most of what he heard no matter how hurtful. He was also incredibly sensitive and caring, as well as touchy and _childish_ in his affections, constantly craving the attention of the people he loved because he needed everyone around. He cared so much about so many people that regardless of his intellectual nature, he was driven by feelings a great percent of the time. It’s not that he was a cry-baby—because he wasn’t—but he just had a bigger heart than most and held everyone dear so his love towards them tended to take his mind on mysterious trips when he was unsure of their condition. Currently, he was unsure even of his own condition so mayhap he was going a little crazy.

He rolled around again, his back on the ground, his head towards the sky. The white light of the Sun momentarily blinded him when he dared to open his eyes and it was then when she came. Athena’s voice resonated on Minhyun’s ears, which meant she was there, even if he couldn’t see her due to the momentary loss of sight, but that was enough. Minhyun didn’t dare standing up but he lifted his back from the ground and sat, crossing his legs.

“I’m so sorry son, but I can’t take you out of Ogygya.” She sounded definite, albeit a pinch of remorse was clearly there for Minhyun to hear. He stood there, still blind—at this point, he guessed it was his mother’s doing—pursed lips and taking big breaths to calm down.

“Do you mean I can’t leave?”

The goddess chuckled, making Minhyun grow a little infuriated. His and the Camp’s future was not a matter of laughter, it was very serious and it should be taken as such.

“What I meant was what I said. I can’t take you out of Ogygya, because I wasn’t the one to bring you here, and I am not allowed to tell you who did. But you can leave and I trust that you, my sweet child, will figure out the way within this day, a few hours from now. All you have to do is think about the information you now have.”

The word _now_ was emphasised in his head, probably his mother’s doing once again. He didn’t even have time to say goodbye (nor did she) when she was gone and his eyes fully functioning again. There must’ve been something in the conversation he overlooked but he couldn’t figure out what and it was messing with his head. Minhyun seriously wanted to pull his hair out.

If he had needed tranquillity for his connection to take place, he needed action for his brain to work, and action was not something you get in the most idyllic spot of a paradisiacal island, was it? That was why he tried to walk back his path, retracting into the woods. He hadn’t notice the day darkening, but suddenly the Sun was hiding behind the trees, painting the horizon with rosy tones that shimmered and danced between the greenery.

The moon was up in the sky sooner than expected and, with the moonlight shining brightly upon the foliage which covered the ground Minhyun stepped in, Seongwoo found him.

 

 

SEONGWOO (II)

 

  
Watching the Sun set was, quite possibly, the highlight of Seongwoo’s day. One would think that after centuries of watching the star go down, he would be bored of it, as he was of everything else surrounding his prison. On the contrary, day’s end was exciting every day, a small mercy of the gods, who allowed the Sun to paint the sky with assorted colours every time. Apollo did always like him a little bit.

That day, the carriage had tinted the skyline a soft pink, almost white. The clouds disrupted the continuum of coral across the cosmos, drawing attention to their forms. Everything reflected on the water at Seongwoo’s feet and he felt something akin to sadness for every being that would never see a sunset as beautiful as that one.

It was fleeting and soon enough the blush the day had taken as it reached its end turned into a blue so dark it played on the verge of black and threatened to engulf whoever looked into it long enough. Seongwoo wasn’t afraid of the dark, not on his island at least.

Ogygya was the perfect prison, he thought. Many times over the years, he had tried to leave, whatever way he could find. At first, he had accepted his punishment without a fight, because they had lost and, considering how other people who fought alongside his father had ended up, he could be considered lucky. So, he stayed quiet and calm, roaming his tranquil island. He was sure his excellent behaviour should grant him a price, because he had spent over 500 years stranded there alone without complaining.

He wasn’t entirely wrong, because half a millennium into the sentence, Doyeon arrived. She was incredibly beautiful, her long black hair tied in a ponytail that fell like a waterfall on her back, hitting the leather of her clothing with her every move. She was clinging onto a wood plank, quite possibly the remnants of a ship. Seongwoo was enamoured as soon as he laid eyes on her, so he went into the water to retreat her.

With the utmost care, he guided her into a cave that opened where the coastline ended. Seongwoo had been living there for the past fifty years or so, since he had grown tired of the always still temperature on the island. The cave was humid and colder, which made it into something he desired then. With the kind help of Aphrodite, who seemed to have grown a liking of him—possibly because of his beauty—he had decorated the inside with elegance and practicality.

The titan couldn’t be any more grateful they had decided to do so because the way into the cave with an unconscious body was easier than dragging it along the sand, bushes and overall terrain of the land.

Arrived there, he took her body in his arms, lifting her in spite of the heaviness and made his way to the bed where he laid her. Soon after, he tended to her wounds and made sure she was safe and rested.

The next day, she had already woken up and was asking Seongwoo all kinds of questions. He was fascinated by how curious she was about everything and most of all he was pleasantly surprised that not even once had she mentioned she wanted to leave. Instead, she had leaned into Seongwoo’s shoulder as they talked and played with the sand on their feet

The days bled into nights one after the other, days spent with Doyeon. He had poured his everything into her, feeding her just as she fed him with her kisses that lightened Seongwoo from the inside and revived his dead heart. Seongwoo fell disastrously in love, and Doyeon let him believe she was in love as well. One day, he found his cave empty, only the decoration left and a note that said: “I’m so sorry I took advantage of you like that. Turns out you were not the big bad God they painted you to be, which means I have to go and tell the tale. There is no horrid Seongwoo of Ogygia, son of Atlas; rather a hearty, seductive god. I took all the food and resources; I’ll need them on my way back to Yoojung. Please thank Hermes on my behalf, he got me out. Farewell, Doyeon.” Seongwoo couldn’t find it in him to be mad, instead, he left the cave mindlessly and never went back.

With Doyeon gone and his heart broken, Seongwoo’s soul was tired. Every morning he woke up without the force to drag his body around the island anymore, but he still did it, day after day, until he didn’t. For ten years, he laid on top of a tree, no food, no water, no movement. And he didn’t die. Many would think of immortality as a blessing, but here, it acted as a curse to keep him trapped forever.

In the years that followed, he had tried many things. He had tried swimming, but he always ended up back in the island, no matter how far he swam. It seemed as if some kind of portal opened and made him appear on the other side of the rock—that was probably it. He had tried building a ship, but they all crashed against a non-existent wall, causing him to go back again. Up in the Olympus, he swore he heard the Gods laugh at his attempts.

Eventually, he accepted his destiny. He would always stay there; he just hoped he wouldn’t have to be alone forever. However, one day he received the visit of one annoying Eros, whom Seongwoo disliked very much. Eros was flirty, frustrating to the point of teeth-gritting and believed himself to be above everyone and everything. Eros walked with a feeling of superiority Seongwoo couldn’t stand, which was the reason why he went into useless hiding as soon as he saw him.

But he was a God, so, in the end, the God of love found him, sitting on a rock beside a waterfall. The words he said would forever be inked to his heart: “I’m granting you something, Seongwoo. I’m granting you a way out.” Seongwoo had quickly nodded in surprise and excitement, and Eros continued. “If someone that leaves comes back to you, you can leave. But you, my dear, may never tell them about this or the offer’s off the table.” Then, he ruffled his hair, laughed, and left.

It had seemed like a gift, but Eros forgot to tell him something Ares would let him know centuries later: “No mortal finds Ogygia twice.”

With that, his time for self-pity flew away as he realised Minhyun wasn’t back from wherever he had gone. He had proven the island to be harmless _for himself_ but, was it true as well for everyone else? With a heavy heart, he delved into the palm trees in the way he recalled the demigod going in. He walked in the greenery for a while, without finding a single trace of the boy and, all in all, he was worried.

Ogygia was huge, which meant that he could search for hours and never find him, unless the island itself intended for them to find. Just as if he had conjured it into happening, he found Minhyun. The moon shone brightly up in the sky, tinting the world with its silver effulgence. The soft luminescence allowed Seongwoo’s eyes to make up the other’s figure, broad shoulders which aligned perfectly with the rest of his body, long legs and outstanding proportions, like those of the figures Aphrodite had told him about. Across the leaves, their eyes met and Minhyun walked towards him like he was pulled by an invisible force. The demigod looked like he wanted to _do_ something, but just stood there, in front of him, his lips agape.

“I spoke with my mother,” then, a small pause. “But she won’t help me leave.”

Seongwoo sighed, but he wasn’t surprised, of course the gods would refuse to take away the only hero he didn’t wish would stay forever. The titan didn’t try to hide his disappointment and started muttering curses under his breath, signalling Minhyun to follow him. Without checking if the other trailed after him (he did), Seongwoo made his way to the “village”. He wasn’t sure if it deserved such name, there weren’t any villagers after all, but it was where everything was so he might as well name it that way.

The village stood on the exact centre of the island, around some kind of natural fountain that started gurgling at seemingly random times. It was pouring water when they arrived, and Minhyun had been really curious, asking him all kind of questions about the way it worked—sadly, he had no answers. Around the geyser stood the impressive amount of five buildings, and they were four buildings too much, to Seongwoo’s opinion.

On the right end was the one he had declared his home, it was slightly smaller than the others, but more complex on the inside. Whereas three out of the four buildings left counted with one abnormally big room, Seongwoo’s home was divided into four stances, stances which he destined for various purposes. It was made of marble, as was everything there, and, just like the others, was topped by a triangle-shaped roof. The whole village was styled after the buildings that graced the Olympus, and honestly, it was quite fitting for Seongwoo should be considered a God after all—because he was the son of a Titan. Sometimes, it was hard to forget he was not his father Atlas, rather his own persona whose only mistake was following his father, as every son would.

Out of the goodness of his heart, he decided to gift Minhyun the only other building in the whole island that had more than one room. It stood in the middle of the village, the third building no matter where you started counting. It was the most outstanding, because of its situation and the way it reflected whatever light hit it. Its biggest downfall was, precisely, the thing that made it special. The luminosity was insufferable for Seongwoo, who had had his fair share of light wanted darkness for a while.

He directed the man to the home, leaving him on the exact door. “So, um, this is where you’ll sleep until we figure out a way for you to leave. Good bye.”

Minhyun looked at him with an unreadable expression before retorting, “Thank you, let’s hope you remain as friendly come tomorrow!”

Then, the demigod went into the place. Seongwoo wanted to tear his head off, how dared he? The way he had said it, though, had been kind of funny, a crooked smile and cheerful quality to his voice. Atlas’ son found himself smiling on the way to the last house on the left, shaking the grin off as soon as he realised. He had decided Minhyun was at least as irritating as Eros, and he was remaining that way, for the sake of his sanity.

 

 

MINHYUN (III)

 

He was incredibly glad Seongwoo had found him. Being lost had made him grow worried and mindless, so when the boy reached to him, he was kind of absent. In fact, he was absentminded the whole way to wherever the brunet was leading him. Not a word was uttered by any of the two, so the entirety of the walk elapsed silently. He remained out of it the whole time, but as soon as they arrived at their destination, he couldn’t help paying attention.

A real Greek village stood in front of his eyes and, had it not been for Seongwoo’s voice to snap him out of his trance, he would still be standing in front of the wooden door that adorned the marble structure which stood right in the middle of the square. The other signalled for him to go inside, and Minhyun who was fully functional now, looked at the other with a grin on his face. He had been lucky Seongwoo even cared to look for him, find him and then gave him a house, he knew that. But in the short time they had been together, he had observed how easy to tease the other man was and he might as well have some fun with it.

“Thank you, let’s hope you remain as friendly come tomorrow!”

Satisfied with how Seongwoo’s face went through a wide range of emotions in a second, Minhyun smirked and turned around. He didn’t allow himself to bask on Seongwoo’s look again and just went inside.

The house was as impressive on the inside as it was on the outside. It was simple, yet elegant in its cleanness. The walls were pristine, made of marble—he thought back to Nayoung and felt his chest hurting—and they shone, despite the lack of luminosity. The only thing that allowed him to see anything was the faint flame of a fire lantern that hung on the wall. It should be dripping wax into the floor, but it wasn’t, somehow. Like a moth, he went closer to where the gleam emanated, carefully observing it. His fingers ghosted around the blaze, expecting to feel the burn. It never came, which left Minhyun feeling curious about what was it truly. A fire that didn’t burn. The demigod clasped it with his fingers, but it didn’t even flicker. A fire that didn’t die. Immortal.

Maybe Seongwoo was, too, he thought as he laid his back on the mattress. It hid on the only room the faint light didn’t reach, so it took a while for his eyes to get used to the darkness until he managed to reach the bed. The cushion was long and wide, left on the floor seemingly without a care. On top of it rested something resembling a set of sheets. They were _dirty and old_ but they would do, it’s not like he was planning on staying long—maybe he wouldn’t have another choice, but he tried not to give it too much thought.

His mind traced back to the useless conversation with his mother, replaying it for the umpteenth time since it had happened. The burning sensation that he was missing something _key_ to his “escape”—not exactly a break, since he wasn’t really jailed or anything—but all he could remember was his mother telling him she couldn’t get him out of Ogygia. Did that mean someone else could? Was he supposed to go asking every God and Goddess until one of them came through like “hey, yes, I was the one who sent you there, sure, I’ll get you out young man!”? He shook his head – that was stupid. But really, who could’ve sent him to such a place? No one even knew where Ogygia was, let alone a way ou—

Not even letting his conscience flow go any longer, he stopped to really let the information sink in. He was dumb.

His mother had name-dropped the place where he was and his mind had been too focused on the “I can’t get you out” that he didn’t even take the most important part of the sentence into account. I can’t get you out _of Ogygia_. Minhyun had just let that slip to the back of his mind, his subconscious taking in the information without him even realising he had such an important piece of information. He knew where he was now, so he could figure out a way out.

Being in Ogygia also meant one thing: Seongwoo was Atlas’ son. That was not something to be taken lightly, he had heard about him many times. Atlas’s son, usually referred to as Ong because it sounded less intimidating—or so Aron used to say when he narrated the stories—was mighty, dangerous, horrid, absolutely to be avoided. They said he was resentful and angry, it was believed he always tried to get the heroes to stay in Ogygia with him. That he enchanted them, like some kind of wizard. Legend was around that Doyeon the mighty almost didn’t make her way back to Yoojung and Ithaca because of him. Thinking about the boy who had saved him, Minhyun couldn’t believe anything of the sort.

The other had seemed… _eager_ to have him out of the island, like if he wanted to be left alone. His mind also rushed back to the first words he had said, and they didn’t sound like he wanted to keep Minhyun prisoner on his island. Rather, he made it clear he wanted to leave as well. Suddenly, the demigod found himself taking the myths no longer as gospel truths. Maybe myths were also written by the winners.

Uneasy, he shifted on his bed, tossing around until Morpheus finally took over him. That night, he dreamt of Seongwoo. The titan was alone on the same island they stood right now, and he roamed the trees with a blank expression of his face, eyes emptied of any life as he looked around. Minhyun was watching from the top of the trees, like a bird, an owl. The moon shone on top of Seongwoo’s frame, and the demigod observed as the other just walked around, the nothingness quality of his moves driving Minhyun crazy until he suddenly stopped as he got out of the woods into the beach. On the shore laid someone the demigod knew, Kang Daniel in his full armour.

Sunrays jolted Minhyun awake, and he wondered if his dream had had some truth in it or if it was his mind running wild. Unable to let it go, he recalled back to how the times ‘the nasty Ong’ had been mentioned in front of Daniel, the blond-haired had never said a word. He recollected the son of Poseidon leaving the room whenever Ogygia was mentioned since he returned from—supposedly—Hecate’s grasp, he had done nothing of the sort before his five months absence. The dark-haired’s mind couldn’t help but wonder if maybe Kang Daniel had been in the same situation he was.

His heart felt heavy in his chest, like he had made a discovery he didn’t mean to. And he didn’t want to pry, but he had to, for his and the Camp’s sake. His breath was shaking a little bit, and so were his steps while he walked out of the cabin to look for Seongwoo. The Sun greeted him, bright and yellow when he got out, the fountain in front of his house spitting water almost _gleefully_ , making a rhythm sound. The titan was there, sitting under an apple tree, he looked relaxed; Minhyun didn’t want to disturb him. He still did anyway.

The demigod approached the other, getting on his knees beside him. His hand reached for the other’s shoulder, laying it in it and shaking him a little, softly. Seongwoo’s eyes were closed, his lashes projecting a shadow on his face, which was being caressed by the Sun. It plucked glistens from his skin, shining under the light. He looked ethereal, almost godly—what he was, he realised—his lips plump and red from a nervous habit of biting them on his sleep, like he was doing right in front of Minhyun. It was almost criminal to wake him up and break the magical moment when life looked like a painting, but his hand had already jiggled Ong awake.

His eyes opened slowly, closing immediately after a ray hit his eyes. Minhyun scooped closer, acting as a barrier between the just-awake and the light source. After a while, the other managed to keep his eyes ajar long enough for them to get accustomed to the sunshine. Two more minutes and he could properly _see_ what was before him, or at least be aware of it.

“Ugh, you,” uttered the other before trying to jolt Minhyun off his body, Minhyun not reacting a bit. Instead, he cupped Seongwoo’s face out of instinct. The titan looked… soft, cute and helpless, with his hair messy and face slightly bloated and red and he had a liking for the adorable. Reminded suddenly of their relation—lack of it—he contained himself, hand mid-air.

The demigod gulped, still not moving an inch. “Me.”

Seongwoo raised his brows. His face was quick to show the confusion he felt, and Minhyun wasn’t shocked, he would’ve been surprised too. Not to mention, the man didn’t seem to like him in the slightest and still he decided it was a good idea to climb on him and wake him up. He was clever for many things, but human interaction when nothing had been previously built was not one of them. Minhyun was too clingy, too caring, too much. His hands seemed to have a live for themselves, and they wanted contact _with everyone_ . His need for affection had never been a problem before simply because everyone he had met had actually _demanded_ such attention. Someone that rejected it was bound to cross his path, but it was surprising anyway.

A minute passed by, stretching itself eternally until Minhyun took it would be more practical to stand up. Maybe Seongwoo would cooperate that way, freed from him. He arose, tending his hand out for Ong to take as assistance to get up. That he would actually take it was something the demigod couldn’t see coming, a soft noise of surprise escaping his mouth.

“Did you… Want anything?”

The other had made a pause to look at Minhyun in the eye. Light brown irises on his, and he was breathless. The gaze in front of him spoke of antiquity, of paradises, of pain, of love. He wanted to hear all of those stories, except they weren’t meant for him to listen. Quickly, he separated his own gaze, directing it at their feet for they surely wouldn’t want to drown him inside.

Did he want something?

Answers, he thought, not verbalizing his words. Minhyun clearly hadn’t think the plan through, seeing as he froze right where he shouldn’t have, how to phrase his question still unformed in his mind. In a spur, he screamed rather than said Kang Daniel’s name, Seongwoo’s face paling at the mere mention. The raven-haired’s heart dropped to the ground.

“H-How do you?”

His mind quickly brought the dream to the front, Daniel’s body unconscious on the beach. Seongwoo running to save him. Seongwoo being alive, but not _living_ until he had Daniel beside him. He shut it down.

“I know him.”

The titan’s face lit up, probably in hope. His eyes glistened under the sun rays, bright enough for Minhyun to catch the beams of light from his eyes. He had lit them on, but he was going to shatter his hopes and off the light. He bit on his bottom lip, the voice failing him for a second.

“Does he… does he talk about me?”

A pause, dragging itself painfully.

“He…”

A chuckle. A bitter one from Seongwoo’s lips.

“Of course, he doesn’t. So, tell me, how do you know?” Another laugh, even faker and madder than the one before. “Who sent you?” Disdain imprinted into every word as he watched the other take a step closer to him. “Are you here to hurt me?”

The desperation in his voice, like a help call, ignited something in Minhyun, something he quickly had to extinguish. He shook his head, verbalizing a big, resonating no. Seongwoo looked down, then at his face again, asking him the same question once more. And he answered, but the titan didn’t answer. Instead, the brunet stood up, his eyes burning into his skin.

“I loved him, and he left me, just as I wish you could leave right now.”

Minhyun remained where he was, standing under the tree, feeling Seongwoo’s pain as his (he was the cause of it, after all).

 

 

* * *

 

 

_second act: Ogygia._

 

SEONGWOO (I)

 

Kang Daniel. One name that reverberated itself through his ears over and over, and hit his heart with the strength of a thousand titans. For a minute, Seongwoo could swear even his breath stopped, and then the world.

Daniel sat beside him somewhere near the waterfall, deep in the woods. The day was sunny, not like he expected anything else from his island, but that day it seemed especially bright. The boy Seongwoo was looking at, on the other hand, appeared gloomier than he ever did, something eating him from the inside out. He could see it, the guilt, the indecision, the pain, and it was consuming.

And he knew. He knew from the beginning that it would come to that, but Seongwoo wanted to be selfish, so he didn’t ask that day. He didn’t ask the day after. He couldn’t handle not asking a third day, so he faced Daniel, hands taking the blonde’s bigger ones in his, and pressing tightly. In the end, he just stated what he knew, that Daniel wanted to leave, and that he was free to do so, except Seongwoo was never the one with the power to make that happen. The son of Poseidon went for a hug, embracing the titan in his arms. Seongwoo hid his face on Daniel’s chest and patted his back comfortably.

The demigod spoke swiftly, still holding him in his arms. He kept on repeating how sorry he was, how much he had thought about it. He laid the various reasons why he was leaving Ogygia. Daniel thanked him, and Seongwoo thanked him back, the titan even putting an effort to fake a cheerful tone. It was a good thing hugs could hide the faces that well.

That night, Poseidon himself made his way to the island, controlling the seas to give Daniel a powerful ship to sail through the waters, the darkness. With one last thank you, Daniel left, without a promise to come back. Not that he could ever deliver it had he made one.

Thinking about Kang Daniel ached, but it ached less every day. One day, it would be just like Doyeon, except she was easier to hate. He would never hate Daniel, and pain was transient, it had to be. Deep inside him, Seongwoo knew he liked to think about Daniel in agony. Agony made it real, because he could _feel_ it, and pain was the only thing he could always feel. Happiness, on the other hand, had proven itself to be fleeting, ephemeral. But that didn’t mean he didn’t crave it.

That was why he couldn’t be fully contented with his—hopefully—temporal cohabitant. He wasn’t ready for the pain again, and his heart was closed. Except he had wanted to hope, on lonely nights, that someone else would come to stay.

Instead, he got a meddling, nosy hero, who had done nothing but be infuriating and act entitled. It must’ve been a divine joke, maybe more punishment. And he was mad, mad at the Gods, mad at Minhyun, mad at himself. So, under the sunlight, he left the square with Minhyun in it and walked with no particular direction.

With his every step, he kicked the ground like a kid on a rant, murmuring curses under his breath. After that many years on Ogygia, he felt lost as he looked around, having no idea where he had gone. So, he let his feet take him wherever, not even worried about not recognising the place he had gotten himself into.

After a while, the trees made way for the white sand and the clear sky. The blue was still so bright it hurt his eyes, the cloud still contrasting white, drawing figures in the sky. The salty smell of the sea filling his nose, and the almost silvery sand soft under his feet. And he kept on dragging his bases along the sand. The grit slowly becoming black rock under himself, and the sky getting covered by a rugged dome.

It was curious how he had unconsciously guided himself there.

The bed was unmade, just as she had left it all those centuries ago. He went inside, taking everything in, the smells, the furniture he had no idea how still remained as good as new, the shiny rocks which contrasted with the ones outside. He let himself relish on the way the sea rhythmically hit the base some levels under him. The saline of the place made his skin tingly in a good way, and he remembered why he liked it so much there. Unexpectedly, a smile took over his face while he passed his hand through the sheets, taking them off the bed. That night, he would burn them, and he would let go of everything they meant.

Time passed and found him laying on the unmade bed hours later. His mind had been blank for a while now, so, he had decided a nice rest was well deserved. Sure, he had all the time in the world to do just that, seeing as he was an immortal being living alone in a paradisiac island and all, but he deserved it right then and there. He was feeling like new, not even wanting to decapitate Minhyun for the first time in the span of twenty-four hours since he had appeared at Ogygia. He was actually feeling off about leaving him without an answer nor a word. Because yes, the guy had crushed his hopes but he had no idea and well, he was actually better off without those because they were foolish and Seongwoo was anything but.

Feeling better than he had in a long time, and sheets hanging on his back, he made his way to the village. Except, Minhyun was on the beach, looking distraught, eyes searching everywhere for something Seongwoo had no idea what could be. He watched silently as the demigod ended up sitting on the sand, visibly tired. Then, he approached him.

“Tired of doing nothing?”

He asked, tease very present in his voice. The scream Minhyun emitted next made him jump almost as high as Minhyun himself did. Honestly, what was that man so loud for? Seongwoo sighed, finding a sort of fondness inside after a good look at the demigod’s look, hair all messy, and eyes wide open. The demigod in question was hugging him suddenly, and he was apologizing over and over again.

He would lie if he said he didn’t feel good about it (the apologies) but also quite guilty. He ignored it. What he also felt was the lack of discomfort from the hug, but he wisely chose to ignore that too. So, he focused on something else, like the sand dripping from Minhyun’s hair and ending up all over his shirt. He didn’t say anything because he was trying really hard to be polite. In the end, he put his arm around Minhyun and deemed it enough.

The other lifted his face, almost hitting Seongwoo’s jaw -something he might’ve not forgiven- to meet the titan’s gaze. The son of Athena’s face was funny, in the way it was made. His eyes were too small, and so were his lips, and both these traits possessed a weird -interesting- shape to try and take the attention off his high-bridged nose that stood out a little too much. (Actually, Seongwoo found him quite handsome, even more so now in the closeness, but he didn’t want to think about it).

“I’m sorry for prying.”

Seongwoo sighed again, loudly. He knew the demigod meant it, but if he thought about it, he had no reason to apologise because in all honesty, he had no idea. And Seongwoo couldn’t hold him responsible for being unaware of stuff, even if he was the son of the most know-it-all being in the whole of creation.

“I’m sorry for storming out. Now, please, get your hands off me and go look for some wood. I have a fire to make.”

Minhyun let go, his arms falling flatly at both sides of his body as soon as the words left Seongwoo’s mouth. Which left him both pleasantly surprised and cold, so it was his hand the one that didn’t leave the other’s body and forced the both of them to remain face to face. Suddenly aware of the distance, or lack of, he switched his arm from Minhyun’s back to Minhyun’s chest and pushed him away, shooing the demigod in the direction of wood.

Maybe sending the person who didn’t know the island to search for the timber hadn’t been Seongwoo’s brightest idea in his over thousand years of existence, but he realised that a bit too late. Just his luck no one was around to see him run after the other screaming his name. Good thing he decided to do that, because five minutes later he found Minhyun struggling to get back to the shore, way too many logs in his hands.

Seongwoo took like half of them, easing the load and making the opposite way in a comfortable silence. The whole way, Seongwoo pretended not to notice the stolen glances Minhyun was taking at him and he made the play-act of not knowing why exactly he noticed. Once arrived, they left the wood on the shore.

“Do you actually know how to make fire out of these? Without a _lighter_?”

Minhyun said in disbelief, Seongwoo scoffed. What was a _lighter_ supposed to be, anyway? Shaking his head, he took one tiny long on one hand, and started to brush it strongly against another log of bigger proportions until a spark jumped from it, igniting the whole thing. Minhyun threw another piece into it, and stopped Seongwoo from throwing a very big one by telling him that he had only taken those with the purpose of sitting on them. Seongwoo then showed him a genuine smile, surprising even himself.

Looking at the stars, he became conscious he had missed the sunset for the first day in a long time. Throwing the used old sheets into the fire, it didn’t matter.

“You’re cool when you don’t open your mouth, Minhyun.”

The other chuckled, his eyes almost closing, creating a crescent moon. Through the small window opened to them, his eyes shone, reflecting the constellations above.

“You’re nicer when you don’t open yours.”

Seongwoo hit the other’s arm, playfully almost with _confidence._ The grin was still visible in Minhyun’s face, who shook his head and passed a hand through his hair.

“I guess I deserved that.” Said the both of them at once, causing a joyful sound to emerge from their mouths.

“I did know Daniel.” Seongwoo started before being interrupted by Minhyun claiming that he didn’t need to know, and apologising once again for having tried to get it out of him without thinking about Seongwoo in the first place. The titan listened to him, and nodded. It wasn’t Minhyun’s inquiry making him feel like he owed the other anything, rather his own self getting tired of keeping everything inside.

“But I _want_ to tell you.”

The other opened his mouth widely in surprise. His whole face expressed his feelings accurately, and the brunet laughed at him. In the short span he had met the demigod, he had displayed a huge range of emotion and the entirety of it was perfectly readable in his face. He was, quite possibly the person with less control over his reactions on the whole planet. Then again, Seongwoo didn’t know many _people_ , but that was probably irrelevant to prove his point.

Throughout the whole story, Minhyun stayed quiet, except for some noises he made just to signal he was still there, still listening to Seongwoo’s sad adventures. He had begun from the end, from Daniel, and as he recaptured aloud, a part of him said good-bye.

Doyeon made a feature as well, and the demigod hummed with recognition when he heard her name, filling in the blanks. She was the stuff of legends, apparently, one of the most loved heroines in history, she had contributed greatly to the shaping of the world as Minhyun knew it. Something in the way the raven-haired narrated the tale of Doyeon told Seongwoo he was withholding information. He decided against enquiring, contented with hearing whatever the other had to say. Knowing the girl with the big eyes who broke him all those years ago had led a glory-full life gave him peace of mind, and just like the sheets had burnt and left, so did the hatred.

At some point, Minhyun had scooped closer to him, their thighs touching, burning in that spot and replacing the heat of the fire that had long extinguished at that point. Seongwoo had his elbows on his legs, resting his chin atop of his closed hands, his eyes fixated on the horizon. The sky was pitch-black, which made the stars shine all that much brighter. A soft summer breeze playing with his hair, and he smiled.

“Do you know who I am?”

He asked, slightly turning his head to look at Minhyun. The man had his eyes already on him, inquiring, curious, like he was trying to figure him out -maybe he was-. He nodded, silently before adding a faint ‘and I don’t mind’ after it. So much for being an asshole, Seongwoo thought.

Safely, he recalled his early days, painted with a golden light. He remembered his siblings, especially Hyas to whom he was close. Hyas had been dashing and charming, making everyone swoon at his presence. He was also fairly reliable, and Seongwoo had confided him with his every dream, and depended on him when times began to darken. In the end, he had died, like many of his family.

He told Minhyun how his father was not bad, just greedy and that caused his downfall, still, he had been very loving towards him and his family. Pleasantly he spoke about Pleione, his mother who did nothing but care and love for everyone around, not only his family. And he had a huge family, he said as he signalled to the stars. The Hyades, up there in Taurus shone above them, and Seongwoo waved them hello, like every night. They were the only constellation that never changed.

Seongwoo spoke of magic, and how he hadn’t tried to use it in millenniums (‘ _Millenniums? Just how old are you?’,_ Minhyun said unconsciously raising his voice, surprise painted all over it. Seongwoo laughed it out, _‘very’_.). Many years ago, he had been a powerful sorcerer, his favourite pastime being extracting the music the nature had within, like some kind of poetic orchestra. Back in the days, the wind would pass through the leaves, hitting the water, and the flowers would move to the melody they were creating. And Seongwoo would dance in the middle of them, feeling as contented as he ever could.

However, Cronos had to make mistakes. Guided by avarice, and power, he ate his every offspring. Rea, a loving mother, had hid two of them, who once grown up rebelled against the time titan. His father, a titan himself, had sided with his kin and so had he. Ten long years of war passed, his father insisting from the beginning on him and his family hiding from the war. In spite of this, he had used his magic to protect those who fought alongside his father instead of hiding or using his magic to harm anyone. When the Gods had won, he knew he was going to be punished, and he accepted it willingly. Since then, not an ounce of magic had been made.

Compassion and something else crossed Minhyun’s face, who had long shifted to be even closer to Seongwoo, and placing a hand on his knee. Seongwoo hadn’t make him take it out (nor he wanted to). Sad eyes on his, the demigod asked him to try and perform some magic, but he declined, he wasn’t sure he could even still do it. Nor if he could perform magic _in Ogygia_. The other nodded, and Seongwoo let out a long sigh.

“Maybe I will try tomorrow, we have to get you out of here and I have no idea how if the Gods are unwilling to help you.” The fox-like man nodded, clutching Seongwoo’s thigh. He leered. “Now, let’s get to sleep, I don’t want to imagine how ugly you must be if you don’t get enough sleep.”

A loud ‘oi!’ left Minhyun’s lips, accompanied by a snort that reverberated around the island as they made their way to the village.

His bed felt _cold_ even if the ambiance was warm enough, the point where Minhyun’s hand had rested a while ago still burning. He tossed around in the cradle, the other man running around in his mind, looking for something in the shore before falling to the ground. What the demigod had been looking for, Seongwoo still didn’t know, but he knew the answer. His dark eyes had looked everywhere for him, probably for hours and the titan’s heart flinched at the thought.

Closing his eyes, he decided he had preferred to think the hero was irritating. Instead, he was preparing himself for the next heartbreak, that was his curse after all.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

_third act: Ogygia._

 

MINHYUN (I)

 

He hated how unfair the Gods were sometimes, Minhyun thought as he laid on his bed. He hated how much re-telling had twisted Seongwoo into someone despicable, instead of the kind-hearted, sweet god who had saved his life. Sure, he was not the nicest of the bunch most of the time, teasing Minhyun non-stop, but his heart was good, the demigod could swear by that.

The sadness of the story still clenching around his heart, Minhyun couldn’t find it in himself to sleep, wandering around the room mindlessly. He dragged his feet around the marble tiles under him, making rounds and marvelling at how his eyes became more and more accustomed to the darkness until he could actually see something. He left the secluded cubicle, exploring the house instead. For all its greatness, it was very impersonal, and Minhyun found himself missing the Camp immensely.

He ached to go back, for the most part. As much as he wanted to, there was also something that pained at the idea of leaving the other behind, but he knew Seongwoo was cursed to never leave the island. The titan had told him what happened every time he had tried to leave and Minhyun was not immortal. If he found himself on the situation of crashing against an invisible wall, he would die, so he couldn’t risk that. Knowing the dangers didn’t make the situation any more right.

In the end, after roaming every stance of the marble building, he marched back to his room, laying on the bed again. Gawking at the roof while his mind went over Seongwoo’s story, he recalled just _how_ both the heroes had left. It wasn’t the Gods, not per-se, it was _the sea_ , _ships_. Sure, they had been provided by the Gods themselves, but around the island they could find wood enough to build a good craft, couldn’t they?

Finally feeling tired, he turned to face the wall and finally fell asleep.

  * That night, he dreamt with the Camp. They seemed worried, some of his friends (Jisung, Guanlin, Jihoon and Woojin, that he could see) were sitting around a cantina’s table, concern painted all over their faces. The dream was mute, but Minhyun could imagine the noises of the Camp at lunchtime. The clothes didn’t seem fitting, though, everyone wearing less clothing than he had only two nights ago. Minhyun shifted on his bed at the uneasiness from seeing them like that settled in. In his dream, he wandered the Half-Blood Camp, ending up in front of the twentieth Cabin, now full of people. Daehwi laid on his bed, with Jinyoung right next to him, something akin to a smile gracing his small face and his eyes flickering with love. Minhyun felt he was interrupting a private moment, and he left only then realising where they were.



When he woke up, he felt as if a weight had been lifted. Considering how very real the dream about Daniel had been, his gut told him this one was real as well, and he had observed the Camp at real-time. Someone had retrieved the counter-spell before something awful happened. Happiness painted all over his face, he stood up as the Sun reached every corner of the room. Slowly, and a little bit sleep-drunk, he walked out of the house. His hair hung flatly on his face, and his eyes were still puffy, but he felt somewhat happy.

Seongwoo was now near the fountain, which hadn’t stop splurging water once since he arrived. The water that felt to the ground reflecting the morning light on it, making the world that it mirrored seem glittery. The titan couldn’t stop staring at the liquid in confusion with analytical eyes, as if trying to figure something out. In the end, he turned around with a shrug, Minhyun just observed him.

“Good morning!”

The demigod said from the door of his house, causing Ong to bump and rotate. Minhyun’s mind must’ve been making things up, because he clearly got a glimpse of a full teethed smile from the other which was quickly replaced by an eyebrow raised and lips pursed.

“Don’t you know you shouldn’t scream so loudly in the morning?!”

Seongwoo answered in an equally loud voice, causing Minhyun to cackle as he made his way to the fountain, sticking a hand into the water to clean his face.

“Am I going to wake the rocks up or what?”

Seongwoo rolled his eyes, stopping in his tracks almost unwittingly to wait up for Minhyun, who reached his spot quickly, grabbing his arm out of pure instinct.

“No.” The titan said, jolting his arm until he let go. “But you might give me a heart attack and honestly how would you leave if I were to die because of you, huh?”

Last night’s realisation kicked in, making him utter an ‘Ah’ out loud which got Seongwoo’s attention, his face furrowed, expecting Minhyun to elaborate (or so he guessed). The raven-haired took a deep breath and played nervously with his fingers.

“I think I found the way out.”, he said before proceeding to walk Seongwoo through the whole mental discourse he had followed until he arrived at the conclusion that the key to exiting the island weren’t the Gods, rather what they provided. Enlightened, the titan nodded several times, saying he’d help Minhyun build a ship (‘ _as quickly as possible, because I want you out of here already, you insufferable-‘_ , the demigod had cut the sentence short by being excited over suddenly spotting a rare bird.)

After having eating breakfast Seongwoo had prepared for him with many complaints, he felt new. The other had gone inside one of the houses and brought back many fruits, breads and toppings for the bread, as well as lightened a pyre so he could heat the food. Minhyun had said nothing about having to eat and despite grumbling much, he could feel Seongwoo had made it because maybe, after all, he had grown on the other’s heart as he could feel the titan growing on his. He found out then, that Seongwoo basically lived off ambrosia he was definitely not willing to share, and that he wouldn’t die no matter how long he stayed without nourishment.

“Please don’t get lost while looking for the wood again because I won’t go looking for you just because you are like a kid and take too many wrong turns.”

Seongwoo scolded him, teasingly. Minhyun retorted that he wouldn’t get lost during daytime because he could see _and_ he had a great sense of direction. Then, they parted ways and his quest for the logs began. Even if it was easier to go around than it had been the night before, he still didn’t know his way around the island, and it wasn’t long until he had absolutely no idea where he was nor where the wood was. Not very Athena-ish of him, he admitted to himself.

In the end, he followed the sound of water, finding himself on the same clearing where he talked to his mom. Taking some time to look at the water, he felt the urge to jump, so, he stripped and delved into the transparent liquid. The water was cold enough for him to get a chill down his spine, but pleasant, given that the weather outside was bordering between hot and hades. He wasn’t a son of Poseidon, but he loved swimming, having taken part in several competitions throughout his student life -before Camp Half-Blood and Athena’s call-. The water always had a calming quality to it, which Minhyun relished.

He swam around, the crystalline stream washing over him. He even dove, daring to open his eyes underwater just for the sake of it. The beams of light filtering in, moving as he made waves with his actions and shining on different points of the lake’s bottom. A blue gleam called to him, right under his body. Minhyun came out for air, and rushed back into the water, until he reached the bottom and contemplated his dagger, catching it with his own two hands. He knew what it meant, that his mother was with him.

He got out of the lake, laying his dagger on the ground, the sapphires projecting navy sparkles to the trees. One of them, catching Seongwoo’s eyes, who was passing through with more logs on his hands that what Minhyun thought humanly possible. For the second time since they met, Minhyun had to cover himself.

“You know I still saw, don’t you?”

The tips of his ears were red and burning, and he had to fight the urge to jump to the water again. Seongwoo wasn’t wearing his usual white attire, instead, something akin to jeans and a black shirt graced his body. A soft ‘Daniel taught me’ was what left Seongwoo’s mouth, who looked at him questionably. Minhyun realised he hadn’t searched for a single log in the whole time the other had gathered quite the impressive amount, and he felt bad because it all was for him.

“Join me?”

He said instead, expecting a witty retort. Definitely not envisaging Seongwoo leaving the logs on the ground and taking off his clothes before throwing himself and Minhyun to the water, splashing it everywhere. Once inside, they played like kids, pulling each other’s feet, throwing water on the other, the sound of laughter filling the air. (‘ _You’re not that bad, Minhyun.’ ‘I never thought you were bad on the first place, Seongwoo’_ ).

Tired, they dragged themselves out of the water, something different about the place. A new musicality filling Minhyun’s ears, and he could swear the flowers around him were _dancing_ to it. Astounded he turned around, the air bursting with melodies, his body moving along. His eyes found Seongwoo’s. They looked watery, a newfound emotion behind them: nostalgy, happiness, wonder. Minhyun laid his hand out for Seongwoo to take, and they were dancing.

It was quite the scenery, honestly, two boys in their underwear waltzing in the middle of the woods. But hey, no one was there to judge them anyway.

The brief pause came to an end with Minhyun showing Seongwoo his mother’s dagger, watching as a sad grin expanded on the titan’s visage while he recalled the story of how he got it and what it meant. Taking after it, Seongwoo urged him to search for the materials to build a ship, or rather, to think _how_ to make one from scratch. But, he was a son of Athena, so it couldn’t be that hard, right?

As they days passed and he still couldn’t design the damned ship despite having -with Seongwoo’s help- gathered every material he could possibly need, he realised it was, indeed pretty fucking hard.

Desperate, Minhyun had hid inside his house, scratching his head trying to find an answer. He recalled reading something on ships, but it wasn’t a mere boat what he needed if he was going to make it out of Ogygia alive. In both Daniel’s and Doyeon’s story, they had left on a cruise-like ship. That probably required hours of work and lots of working hands. They had four, but they would have to make it work. They also had Seongwoo’s newfound magic as well.

It had resurfaced for no reason after their moment in the lake, which kept on repeating itself day after day. Minhyun guessed it had been over two weeks since he first arrived, and their relationship had smoothed out incredibly from where it began. At the beginning, Seongwoo had been reluctant to act cordially to Minhyun, but the demigod could feel the other becoming _sweeter_ and himself growing attached of the other, despite his best efforts not to because he didn’t want to feel any worse for leaving him behind.

They still filled every silence with witty remarks and sassy retorts, but the fondness that at some point was implied in them was impossible to ignore and it was heavy. It made Minhyun’s heart beat slowly and quickly at the same time whenever he stole a glance at Seongwoo’s three moles, that looked like the stars in the sky. His hands sweated while working on the designs every time the other came into the room, fried tomatoes -Minhyun’s favourites- and ambrosia -for himself- in hand. There were moments where they didn’t speak, instead sat in complete silence just for the sake of company.

Minhyun was getting accustomed to the island, to the silence. And most painfully, to Seongwoo.

The Sun was setting under the sea, painting the day in purple lights Minhyun had never seen. They exploded in all kind of lilac shadows, playing with the blue of the sea and the green of the trees, softly treating the world as their canvas. He was thankful such beauty was unravelling in front of his eyes, and he dozed off on Seongwoo’s shoulder not long after.

Another day, the sunset found them bathing on the lake the same water they splashed in, in a glowing orange that quietly made way for the starry night they contemplated, still soaking wet from the swims.

Minhyun was finally making some progresses on the designs, proving themselves not to be _that_ hard once he remembered one book on craft making he had read long ago. His hand was drawing swiftly across the paper Seongwoo had proportioned him, and the titan looked over his shoulder, one hand resting on it.

More days bled into nights, and Minhyun completed a first scheme. That night, they sat on the beach and talked about anything and everything.

The demigod walked Seongwoo through his infancy. When he was born, his father still lived with his grandparents -or rather, again- in a big village cosy house. It was graced with a huge patio where Minhyun spent a great time of his childhood before he started attending school. At some point, his father had married a beautiful woman, and his older sister Sujin came into his life bringing him nothing but joy, so, he never inquired who his biological mother was.

He had always been a nice child, and he had no problem merging in with his neighbours. Ever since he was born, he had been told he maybe talked too much about the most diverse of themes, and while lot of the people around him sometimes found that annoying, his father never did, furthering his interest in every aspect of life.

Then, he started school. Needless to say, he was fascinated with learning, enamoured with knowledge long before he knew what that word meant. They were happy years, and he still remembered Jisoo, Jeonghan, Jieqiong and lots of his friends he made before he could even guess he was not like everyone. School turned to High School, where he joined many clubs, and always did the most, never having any problem staying top of the class.

Then, he had been attacked on his way back home, chased through the streets by a freaking Minotaur. Just his luck! He decided not to go home, not wanting to bring any danger their way. In his flight from the monster, he had come across the Camp Half-Blood, whose barrier opened for him and left the Minotaur outside. He was greeted by a boy’s kind face, he was older than Minhyun, and his eyes radiated humanity. The boy didn’t know how to explain it, but the other was _warm_ and always helpful. He took Minhyun into his arms and guided him inside, introducing himself as Jisung. That was the beginning of his new life. Once there, he was put into Hermes’ cabin, where they let those who hadn’t been claimed yet and provisioned him with the means to contact his family.

His father had been going crazy for days, but as soon as Minhyun explained, he smiled softly and said something along the lines of ‘I knew this would happen at some point’. Sujin and his step-mother told him they loved him, and Minhyun promised to visit once he knew what was going on. That night, around the bonfire, Athena had claimed him.

Fascinated by the Camp, Minhyun gave his everything to educate himself in battle, in Greek, in learning the History. He enjoyed the games, the bonding, the friendly banter with his newfound friends. At first, he stayed there permanently, making it more of a seasonal stay later on.

Every time he came back, he rediscovered his love for helping everyone, for planning, for the missions. Over the years, he had earned quite a fame, adding gifts to his Camp bracelet. He wished he had never gotten the last once.

It was his sixth summer at the camp when the war broke. The inside of Hermes’ cabin full of him and his friends, laughing and playing games. Woojin and Jihoon’s public displays of affection when inebriated due to Daehwi’s enchantment (possibly) gone wrong were the butt of every joke. Suddenly, Guanlin screamed. The kid was the closest to the window, and he watched in horror as the children outside began to fight themselves in a non-friendly way.

And just like that, the war had begun, stretching for three agonizing years, and they were still living the afterward. During the hostile times, Minhyun had drown out battle plans at first before jumping head first into the fight. He was a man of action, and the unbreakable team of him and his sword, shield and dagger was invincible. He had been the one to take over the ‘centre’ once Daniel disappeared, leaving Sungwoon too hurt to battle as well. Many monsters had died, sent to the Tartarus only to come back quickly because Hypnos was _that_ strong and had somehow managed to confuse Thanatos into opening the door just a little bit.

Some of the bigger gods decided to help them as well, when the war was almost over. Asklepion tended to their wounded, preventing them from having any downs. Minhyun had even fought gods, with a too-willing-to-fight Ares by his side, managing to take Morpheus down for the other deities to deal with him back in the Olympus. The end of the war came by the hand of Daehwi, who stood up against his mother until she woke up from the brainwash Cronos had done.

Seongwoo listened to the whole story, taking Minhyun’s hand throughout the half of it. They ended laying on their backs as the sand messed up their hairs and the soft summer breeze blew away their worries for one more night. (‘ _These gods are assholes, huh?’_ Seongwoo whispered funnily. ‘ _They sure are something.’_ He retorted.)

They fell asleep under the starry night, limbs tangled and breaths merging.

  


 

SEONGWOO (I)

 

That morning he had woken up quite early, and rolled on the bed a million times before deciding to go outside and greet the great Helios. The burning ball was already on the sky, making everything a tad too shiny for his eyes that had just woken up. Honestly, it was a bit disrespectful to shine _that_ much, he though as he lifted a hand to cover his face.

With strong steps, he left his house and delved into the woods beside it. The whole island was mostly full of boring, monotonous palm trees but almost a century into his punishment, Demeter had passed by. She was the deity of agriculture, seasons, fertility… and well, the list went on. The woman was quite the portent, and on top of all that, she had always been kind-hearted and sensible, his personality thus being even more astounding than her powers or her battle skills. Even while the war between Gods and Titans unravelled, she had been _good_ , so Seongwoo admired her very much. Besides, she had advocated for him not to be exiled forever, along with Aphrodite and some more. He was thankful towards her, so, he was very happy when she dropped by, even more when she gifted him with a garden that grew overtime until it took the left side of the island, replacing the palm trees.

There were flowers growing there, of every colour and smell. Seongwoo had taken upon him to plant them on other places of the island as well. Eons ago he would’ve used his powers for such, but he was afraid to try, so over the years, he had farmed them in various spots and transformed the image of the island. There grew trees as well, giving him all kinds of fruits he still ate even if he didn’t actually need to. That morning he decided to collect some for Minhyun, remembering the other needed to eat if he wanted to be alive, and Seongwoo didn’t save people for them to die of famine, did he?

He picked apples, oranges, pears, pomegranates, carefully shoving them in a wicker basket. If the other didn’t like fruits he was facing a problem, but it was not Seongwoo’s concern, actually. Once the basket was full, he headed back, inhaling the fresh scent of the air that carried flower, fruits and summer in it.

He left the basket on the building he used as a store, having ambrosia there as well. Then, he went out, his feet taking him to the central fountain. It was curious how it had been functioning non-stop since a few days ago, considering it only did something once in centuries, and never continuously. Somehow, it had graced him with water ever since Minhyun arrived, and Seongwoo tried not to look too much into it. Anyway, he stood near it, basking on the freshness.

Minhyun’s voice made him jump on his spot, clenching his heart with his left hand and turning around. The demigod was standing in the door of his Seongwoo-given house, the morning brightness probably being too much for his eyes, judging from how he barely managed to keep them open. His face had a puffy quality to it, still red-ish from having just woken up. His hair was messy and fell on his forehead in a cute way. Seongwoo couldn’t help the toothy grin on his lips, which he quickly replaced with the pursing of the same, raising an eyebrow and nagging at Minhyun for being too loud at those unholy hours.

The other was funny, always a witty comeback for everything Seongwoo said. He wished it wasn’t so easy to fall into a routine with the man, knowing damn well it wasn’t going to last. The titan walked a bit before stopping when he heard noisy steps behind him, waiting for Minhyun to reach his position. The demigod grabbed his arm, his skin almost _burning_ at the contact, just like last night. Of course, it was all in his mind, it’s not like he was actually on fire or anything.

Trying to stop his heart from making jumps in his chest, he shook his arm until Minhyun let go, answering him in the process and hoping to cause at least a giggle. Instead, he was met by an ‘Ah’ voiced by Minhyun almost unconsciously. Not knowing what had caused that realization moment and genuinely curious about it, Seongwoo stared at Minhyun, furrowing his eyes and raising an eyebrow, expectant. The other didn’t seem like he was going to answer any time soon, so he hardened his expression until Minhyun spoke nervously.

Apparently, he had found a way out (Seongwoo wondered what went on in Minhyun’s dreams, because those were to dream-findings in a row). Honestly, his ideas made sense, and the titan mentally facepalmed himself for not being the one to realise despite having lived through the happenings that gave Minhyun the idea in the first place. Maybe it was a mean of survival, his egoism shining through in a twisted if-I-don’t-tell-you-then-you-won’t-leave kind of way. Maybe he was just not very good at making connections. The world would never know, so he just nodded along to whatever the demigod was babbling, even agreeing to help him build a whole ship (not that he actually _knew_ how to build one, but he’d help) and urging him to do it quickly. However, he couldn’t even finish his last sentence because the son of Athena, showing his Athena personality was gushing over a rare bird. Kids these days!

In order for them to have enough energy to get through the day, they -or at least the mortal of the both- had to nourish so, he went into the “storage” not without complaining loudly about well, anything and everything. He had an image to show, even if he was actually doing everything out of the goodness of his heart. He took the fruit he had collected that morning, as well as some bread and marmalade he had made himself. With himself in mind, he took some ambrosia as well, and went out. (‘ _The things I do for you!’_ He exclaimed. ‘ _Thank you’_ Minhyun answered, truthful.)

Once they finished eating, they discussed their “plan of action” as Minhyun had named it, Seongwoo found it funny and it stuck. Turned out neither Minhyun nor Seongwoo himself had the slightest idea on ship building, but the both agreed that wood was going to be necessary. Thus, they would dedicate that fine morning and afternoon to the recollection of said material, and that was the plan. Recalling how easily Minhyun had gotten lost the night before, the titan was kind of against parting ways -that being _absolutely_ the only reason why- and made sure Minhyun knew Seongwoo was not deviating just to save him as if he was some kind of person in distress. Even if he totally would, just because searching for a dead body would be worse.

The demigod assured him he was definitely not going to get lost that time because daytime would guide him or something along those lines. Which didn’t sound that much truthful to Seongwoo’s ears, not that he could do anything about it anyway and they parted ways.

It’s not that he had hidden stashes of wood throughout the island, but he actually did somehow. His best guess was Doyeon cutting enough wood to build a whole house with capacity for five people and then using just a bit portion of it, leaving the rest to rot, except, like everything in Ogygia, they didn’t _die_ and sometimes Seongwoo would just walk into a stack of logs and well, he just ignored them and acted as if they were the most common thing. By then, he guessed he had located the most of them and he just used them to make the occasional bonfire by the water when he was bored out of his mind. Or, apparently, when he wanted to build a cruise.

He shook his head all the way to where the biggest mountain of logs was located. It being so deep into the woods was probably the only reason it remained as huge, Seongwoo not having the will to walk up to there and carry the weight back to the beach -not for himself, because now he was willing to do it for _a hero_. Because it benefited him in the way of not having to see his annoying face again-.

He rearranged the planks on the ground, grunting while he tried to carry the most of them at once, opting to do it on more than one walk. Like that, he did the whole way around ten times until he was done and moved to the next location once the biggest mountain laid safely inside the cave.

It was maybe a five-minute walk from the ‘wooden mountain’ to the ‘wooden hill’, and he honestly hoped it was worth it, since Minhyun had gone in the direction the second biggest harem was. Luckily, there were still some logs there, probably because dumb himself had sent Minhyun in that exact direction the night before and they had raided it, meaning the second biggest heap was not that one anymore. Refusing to make more than one trip for that amount of wood, he took it upon himself to carry them all at once, even if it was crazy.

Loaded with wood and walking around the greenery, he was light-shot with something blue in his eye. Equally curious and mad, he walked the direction of the light only to find Minhyun. The other was shirtless, freshly out water if the liquid dripping from his hair was any indicator. He had a nice body, Seongwoo observed, the muscles on his arms softly defined, as well as his abdomen, which was firm with the muscles sticking out if he took a deep breath. Seongwoo did his best not to stare, because he didn’t want to come off as a creep.

When the demigod noticed him, his hands flew to cover his, well, masculine organs. Seongwoo hadn’t even noticed, way more focused on other parts of the outstanding physique of the man, but still, he pretended he did. For the sake of watching Minhyun’s ears turn red as Seongwoo’s words reached him. Not soon after it was his turn to end up red-eared as Minhyun’s fox-like eyes checked him out entirely. Realising he was looking at his attire because he couldn’t possibly be looking at anything else, Seongwoo explained that it was Daniel who taught him that way of dressing. Minhyun couldn’t possibly find his clothes that weird because he knew Daniel so they had to be contemporaries but the son of Athena was a weird kid.

Another thing the son of Athena was, was, apparently, incapable. Not a single piece of wood to be found in the whole clearance except for those in his own arms, Seongwoo had to look at least a bit disappointed, raising his eyebrow at Minhyun. The other boy instead of apologising or rushing to dress himself and do what he was supposed to, shamelessly asked him to join him for a swim. And Seongwoo found himself saying yes, without even thinking it through.

Moments later, he was undressed and throwing Minhyun into the tiny lake. They were splashing water at one another, laughing so loud they were sure to scare the birds away. But Seongwoo didn’t mind, actually having fun in such a long time. Every laugh Minhyun caused was genuine, and for a while, Seongwoo let his guard down.

The demigod looked beautiful like that, having fun in the water, acting like a kid. They were joking around, drowning each other. Every time Minhyun laughed, though, Seongwoo was drowning for real. They kept on playing until they were tired, resting on the edge of the lake. Minhyun was beside him, and the titan felt the curious eyes of the other examining his semblance. The silence was comfortable, only his breathings audible, not even the birds daring to break the spell.

“You’re not that bad, Minhyun.”

He meant it, even a little bit more than he let out. The moment had ended, and he was ready to put is guard up again. When Minhyun said he never thought he was bad in the first place, the barrier he had put around his heart was nowhere to be found anymore. It was destiny, anyway, he realised. Like every time before, Seongwoo was meant to fall in love, only for the object of his love to leave every time. That was his curse, and he couldn’t fight against the will of the Olympus. Minhyun was just like Doyeon and Daniel, and still, it felt different as he let his heart burst with the realisation of how sweet the other was and how fond he was already. There was music on his soul, and he just let it out.

The hero sighed before pushing himself out of the water and helping him out as well. Taking the raven-haired’s heart, the titan’s inner melody only became louder, and it exploded everywhere. Seongwoo felt it everywhere, he felt the musicality of the wildness, the harmony of the idyllic, and the world was _dancing_ exploding with lyrical beauty, and he felt transported to simpler times when the universe was golden. His eyes were watering, bursting with emotions, his magic filling him again and making him feel close to complete. Melancholy took over him, and there was hope, and happiness. Minhyun was humming along to the melody that was Seongwoo, until their eyes met and the titan fought the tears that threatened to go out. Suddenly, the demigod was forcing the minor God to dance as well. Their hands linked and the plants waltzed to the beat of his heart, and so did they, round and round, the Sun as their focus and the island their stage. Life was their public, and for a fleeting moment it felt like they would dance forever.

The stolen glistens of blue light from the dagger filled his view when they stopped dancing, still hand in hand as they sat on the grass beside the lake. Minhyun took the blade on his hands, looking almost excited to tell Seongwoo the story of the weapon. It involved Athena, in an outburst of love and her usual mystery, caring for Minhyun when he was a scared teenager. Having lost it the day he arrived at Ogygia, he had deemed it gone forever, but suddenly het got a glimpse of sapphire while he swam on the lake and threw himself for it. It was a sign, he had said with such a conviction that Seongwoo believed him too. He knew he would be back home soon, he said. With his heart clenched, the titan urged him to search for the materials he needed for the ship. On second thought, he told Minhyun that if he was to build a ship, they would have to design said ship and wasn’t he the son of Athena after all?

The demigod seemed stuck, though, Seongwoo observed as the days passed and he made no breakthrough, having no idea where to even _start_ apparently. The titan didn’t want to feel sad just by looking at the black-haired’s desperation, but he could not help the way his heart dropped a bit every time he walked into the marble building and Minhyun had fallen asleep on the still blank paper.

He made himself useful collecting as much wood as possible, as well as other materials like metals, rocks, cloth and such. With his newfound magic it was easier to locate the various materials on the island and even _invoke_ them with the mere sound of his voice. It was a foreign feeling, having all that power again. He remained unable to leave the island, and he was not as great as he once was, but it was a pleasant feeling.

Whenever he wasn’t around the island taking whatever he deemed useful, he was with Minhyun. Seongwoo sat somewhere in the tiniest room, the one the demigod had chosen to work in and made small talk, always succeeding at taking the other’s head off whatever worried him at the moment and resulting in a festival of laugh. But it wasn’t always him doing the talking, the son of Athena was quite talkative, and he painted the earth to Seongwoo with just his words. He heard about video games, about how there were many styles of clothing -and Minhyun was considered to dress well-, he heard about what Minhyun named pop culture, movies, music, books. Even if he would never experience any of that, getting to know them by the demigod’s voice was an experience in itself.

He ached to know everything Minhyun was presenting, but for now he was contented by helping the other return to his home. And yet, as the days passed, he wanted to offer Minhyun to stay with him, to offer him the immortality… except he didn’t want to _condemn_ him, because Ogygia was Seongwoo’s prison and he would never punish the man like that. It didn’t matter if his heart ached for the other, or maybe it was for that reason exactly.

The days kept on passing between friendly banter, Seongwoo falling deeper and not even trying to stop it. Minhyun, on the other hand, was hot and cold, but he didn’t mind and attributed it to the tension of not being able to go despite being _so close_ . (‘ _Are you sure you’re Athena’s son?’_ Seongwoo said, hugging a sitting Minhyun from behind and taking a peak at his sketches. ‘ _Shut up!’_ the demigod answered, pretending to be mad but unable to supress the laugh the spread through the room.)

They made it a habit to stare at the sunset, marvelling as the day gave into the night and coloured the sky with every tone of the palette. Rosy sunsets were Seongwoo’s favourites, because it reminded him of love, of hope, of live. The sea was so beautiful when it mirrored the pink shade of the sky. When he took his eyes off it and stared at Minhyun, his eyes shining with a gleam of cerise, the blush of the sky was even more beautiful.

The nights were a whole other story, usually falling asleep one beside the other whether it was on the beach or the village. The sound of their voices filling the ambiance continuously, sharing confidence between the two of them in hushed voices and big laughter. As the days passed, the feeling of them being numbered was realer, so he would enjoy every moment as fleeting as they were.

There was this day Seongwoo had gathered everything inside him and guided Minhyun into the cave where he had loved and lost Doyeon. The image of someone else roaming the stance was… unusual, and still, it didn’t feel _wrong_ if said person was Hwang Minhyun, son of Athena. The boy had marvelled at the infrastructure (‘ _How is this even built?’_ Minhyun inquired, his eyes scanning the whole place darting from side to side, a fire behind them. ‘ _I don’t know, nature, I guess?’_ Seongwoo shrugged. ‘ _I bet it was nature as well who put a whole bed in here’_ And they laughed). Their hands had found each other, merely a brush, neither of them daring to hold out for the other. His fingers stretched enough to passed through the demigod’s warm ones once more, the connection electrifying. Then, he closed his hand in a fist, missing the opportunity to take the hand Minhyun had offered a second too late.

One morning of the odds they didn’t sleep at the same place, Minhyun broke into Seongwoo’s room waving a design in his face. Seongwoo was woken up by the demigod’s honey voice yelling something that sounded like ‘I made it! I made it!’ to his still asleep ears and the other man’s eyes was the first thing he saw before the outline of a ship entered his vision field. He couldn’t deny the pain that overrode him when he realised exactly what that meant, but he was happy nonetheless.

They spent that day as if it was the last -because it probably was-, and that night Minhyun told Seongwoo all about his life. He spoke of dreams, of friends, he spoke about everything that was waiting for him, and Seongwoo took Minhyun’s hand wondering if that way the other could feel the love he felt. How thankful he was for their limited time. He took his hand, and they fell asleep, Minhyun embracing him as the night became colder.

They woke up in each other’s arms, and they stood like that for a while, neither of them wanting to face that it was goodbye.

It took a while for any of them to stand up, and Seongwoo did it first, smiling down at Minhyun, whose eyes seemed red and puffy, like he had cried. But it was probably his mind making it up.

“I guess… I better get going, you know? Study your design, work my magic. With a little bit of your help, of course, and it should be done before sunset.”

He tried with all his might to deceive Minhyun into thinking he still wanted him to leave. His smile was probably quite fake-looking, but he was trying his best to appear cheerful. The other’s appearance wasn’t helping. The raven-haired’s expression was sombre and tired, lifelessly standing up. Step by step, the demigod approached him, engulfing him in a hug. His blood made quite the trick as it simultaneously froze and burned.

He put his arms around Minhyun’s waist, and when warm hands travelled through his back, he braced himself for the crash. Except it never came, and Minhyun’s hands retreated, like Seongwoo was fire and he didn’t want to get calcinated. It was too late for Seongwoo who had already drowned on the everythingness that was Minhyun.

“Thank you.”

The other whispered into his ear. His breath was hot against Seongwoo’s ear, making a chill travel down his spine. A soft ‘It’s nothing’ left his lips, the words he actually wanted to say killing themselves against his closed lips.

 

 

 

MINHYUN (II)

 

He knew he had to let go, but with Seongwoo between his arms he wasn’t sure if he even could. The titan was hiding his face on his chest, and instead of releasing him, Minhyun pressed harder. The world stopped spinning, and for the second time in the last five minutes, the demigod was not brave enough to follow his heart.

They parted, Seongwoo looking down, his red eyes probably mimicking Minhyun’s. It was messy, the state of them. For the first time, the raven-haired hated the deities with a passion, for never caring about what was beneath them. For not looking into things _enough_ thus causing people like Seongwoo to end up in a situation like that just because he was wrong. Life wasn’t fair.

The sorcerer left in the direction of the cave where the wood was kept -and everything they had collected, really- and Minhyun’s task was that of retrieving the design for the ship. He knew the island like the back of his hand now, discerning perfectly which trees made a labyrinth and which palms guided him straight to the village. He took the long way, getting lost for the last time, probably.

The greenery had been entrancing since the first day, so out of what he was used to. Sure, he had seen palm trees in real life, but not _like those_. They looked like they were out of a movie, truly a sight to behold. Sadness crept into his heart while he recalled the sun hiding behind them on his first day in Ogygia. He was sure he would never see a sunset like those of the island.

With wide steps, he reached his house in a second, the water from the fountain splashing on his feet. It must’ve overflowed at some point, Minhyun thought, not minding the mess his wet soles were making on the pristine floor. The designs rested messily atop of the bed, just as he had left them the morning before after excitedly running Seongwoo through them. Diligently, he picked them up, carefully folding them. After one last look, he left the house, the bed unmade and the room a mess, leaving a part of himself behind.

On his way back to the shore, he took the shortest way through the woods.

When he got there, Seongwoo was already there, way too many logs and possibly useless stuff around him making a mess of the bright sand. The titan stood there, somehow playing with the materials, spreading them further before bringing them back over and over.

“Did you get lost?”

The brunet inquired, half-joking, half-serious if Minhyun was to guess by his voice. He did his best not to crush the sketches at hand, and gave them to Seongwoo who looked at them, nodding in understand. To be honest, the demigod was almost sure the other had no idea how a ship like the one he designed even _worked_ but still he was like ‘well, yes I’ll do this for you’ and his heart skipped a beat thinking about how sweet the titan actually was. Once he was back home, he would make sure everyone knew. First, he would clear Ong’s name and then he would force the Gods to lift their barriers so he could leave. By Athena, he would pick Seongwoo up himself.

The demigod began to explain how the ship in his designs worked, it was rudimentary at best, but hopefully enough to get him out. For the way back, he would find something better. On his papers, a sketch displaying a ship akin to a clipper except way tinier. Those types of boats were known for their velocity and utility, and they weren’t that hard to make, so Minhyun had opted to follow what he remembered, and it would be good as long as it floated.

It was kind of up to Seongwoo then, Minhyun’s only task being retrieving those components that ended up far if something went wrong. He was under the impression he wouldn’t have to move much.

As expected, Seongwoo was outstanding, working his magic like he had never stopped doing so. The wood swiftly coming together, assembling naturally like they were meant to become a ship. The demigod found himself holding his breath, staring at the other man. The titan had his hands above his head, and he moved them making figures. The logs changed their shape as Seongwoo commanded them to, and they joined, the nails jointing them further. It wasn’t long until the whole base of the ship was done, but the other seemed tired, so the demigod suggested a break. Truth be told, he felt guilty and useless at the moment, knowing he was doing nothing meanwhile Seongwoo did everything _for him_.

Unsurprisingly, the sorcerer refused. He claimed he could go on, but his words fell on empty ears because Minhyun was not going to let him overwork himself just so he could leave sooner. Walking up to him and taking his hands, the demigod forced his friend to close his eyes and relax for a second, and even if the brunet had said he didn’t need to, he smiled while resting his head on Minhyun’s lap while they sat on the beach.

Time was running out, just like Minhyun ran his hands through Seongwoo’s hair. Soft eyes looking up to stare into his. They were a soft brown, reflecting the golden glow of the Sun in them, as well as emitting a light of their own. They were the colour of the earth, and big enough to hide a world behind. Minhyun wondered what they hid behind, and wished he would be there long enough to unravel the mystery that was Seongwoo.

His right hand caressed the brunet’s face tenderly, like he was going to harm him if he pressed too hard, barely passing his fingers over the outline of his cheek. The titan looked peaceful like that, with his mouth agape and his eyes closed again. For the third time that day, Minhyun didn’t kiss him.

Seongwoo’s chest moved up and down, his breathing slowing as he fell asleep. With the outmost care, Minhyun lifted the man from his boy and laid him on the sand, taking it upon himself to finish what was left of the ship. A few days ago, Seongwoo had brought him a rusty hammer, apparently it had been sitting in the “storage” house since forever, but given that he never had to use it, he had no idea, he had told Minhyun. So, thinking it might turn out to be useful, the titan had given him the tool.

The son of Athena wasn’t new to working with his hands, so, he diligently worked on nailing and stapling, the hardest part was done anyway. After two hours of hard work, and completely drenched in sweat, he was almost done, only the tying of the sails left, but he would wait for Seongwoo to wake up for those, because that was one thing he had no idea how to do.

The other man opened his eyes to a whole ship, and Minhyun greeted him from the inside. The demigod called out Seongwoo’s name, his whole face lighting up as the other ran towards him, shock painted all over his face. (‘ _You did this?’_ Minhyun nodded proudly. _‘But I was supposed to do it for you.’_ Seongwoo said as he stepped on the ship. _‘Trust me, you’ve done enough.’_ )

Noticing the sails weren’t up yet and the day was almost over, Minhyun urged Seongwoo, who tied them up and strong, white waves flowing in the wind. Sitting on a bench they had built inside the clipper for comfort, their last sunset unravelled before their eyes. Hueing the world a colour they couldn’t even name, it seemed like magic had taken over their existence. Seongwoo was glowing in Minhyun’s eyes, which radiated with the feelings he had developed over their time together. The other was gazing into the distance, unaware of how he was drooling and maybe it was better that way, because Minhyun had no idea what he would do if their eyes were to meet. In that second, Seongwoo turned towards him, his eyes glazed and shiny.

Before his brain had time to catch up, his hands were cupping Seongwoo’s face, bringing the other man closer. He scanned the titan’s lips attentively, how they were half opened and pink. They looked soft and calling, and Minhyun closed the distance between them, pressing softly on Seongwoo’s mouth. It wasn’t fiery, it wasn’t an outburst of heat, but when the demigod felt Seongwoo kissing back, he swore the world was melting. It was barely a touch, their lips brushing in the softest way possible, not even enough time for the sweetness of Seongwoo to fill Minhyun fully, the taste just lingering on his lips before Seongwoo pulled away.

The titan looked at him like a deer caught in the lights, his eyes wide open, an unreadable expression on his face. His mouth opened and closed in a quick motion, like he was trying to say something. The words never came, and Minhyun was pulled for another kiss instead. This time, there was fire behind it, much more aggressive as their mouths motioned quickly trying to make the most out of the moment. It was like Seongwoo was devouring him, and Minhyun was just as hungry for the other. When the brunet parted his lips, the demigod found his way, outlining the other with his tongue. The ambrosia the other had taken was sweet, but the titan himself was sweeter, overriding Minhyun’s senses. His hands cupped Seongwoo’s face, trying to hold him steady because, even if they were sitting, the world was spinning too fast. He deepened the kiss, enjoying every second of it.

This time, it was Minhyun who broke apart, letting his forehead rest on Seongwoo’s. Their eyes conveyed everything their voices couldn’t. _I don’t want to leave you. I don’t want to go. I wish you could come with me. I’ll find you again. I…_

The shadow of a sad smile spread all over Seongwoo’s face, his eyes twinkling under the starry night and right then, goodbye was the hardest word. Soundlessly, the titan stood up, his hand caressing Minhyun’s face. The demigod, who was looking at his feet, glanced at the other, sharing their last moment together.

“Seongwoo, I-“

He was abruptly cut short by the god, his eyes still fixated on him.

“Don’t say it. I know.”

The night didn’t seem to shine as bright anymore.

“I will find you, I will come back.”

Seongwoo nodded, smiling at Minhyun once more before stepping out of their ship. The demigod contemplated defeatedly as the titan set foot on the sand and prompted his clipper into the sea. Grasping on the wheel, he looked back at Ogygia once more, the brunet’s figure contrasting starkly against the outline of the trees. His tears were engulfed by the sea, where they merged with the salt and the water being carried back to the island where he had left part of himself.

_intermission: SEONGWOO_

He watched with glassy eyes as someone else left him alone on the island. The aftertaste of their kiss still lingering on his lips, making them tingle. Minhyun had wanted to tell him something, but Seongwoo didn’t want to hear it -didn’t want to feel it-. If things had been different, he would’ve said it.

Instead, they were who they were. ‘I will come back’, Minhyun said. Seongwoo had wanted to scoff, instead, he smiled trying to hide the sadness creeping up his heart. _No, you won’t, because no man finds Ogygia twice._

The titan didn’t stop waving goodbye until the ship was no longer visible. In reality, he felt like he would keep on saying goodbye forever.

 

 

* * *

 

 

_fourth act: Camp Half-Blood._

 

MINHYUN.

 

Somewhere along the way, he had fallen asleep on the ship. Not his brightest idea, but it’s not like he had any clue where Ogygia was, so letting the ship drive itself was… the only option – definitely not, but he wasn’t thinking straight. For a while he had stirred the wheel, but there were no rocks along the way, just a calm sea swinging the clipper softly in a motion calming enough to get Minhyun a little sleepy. Before he could realise his eyes were closed and he was fast asleep, not even the sudden apparition of the Sun on the sky as soon as he got out of the micro-world that was Ogygia woke him up.

In his sleep, he had missed the way something guided his craft across the sea, missing everything that would cause him harm. Athena would thank Poseidon and the nereids for him – some of the Nereids were wishing for Minhyun to thank them himself, but it’s not like he would ever know. The sweet rocking of the crests brought him back home, the barrier lifted when his one-person-sized version of a huge cruise got to their shore. The earthly Sun was filling everything with its light, momentarily blinding Minhyun when Jinyoung’s screams scared him awake.

“Minhyun! Minhyun! Minhyun is here!”

The minor yelled without rest, alerting the whole Camp until almost everyone was gathered around the river –took them less than a full minute, and Minhyun still wasn’t fully awake nor had the ship hit the shore yet. The son of Athena couldn’t make sense of the weather outside, being pretty sure that it couldn’t have possibly been more than a month since he left and it was freezing cold when he did. Looking around, all he saw were short-sleeved shirts and pants, his own tank top not making him feel out of place.

The more awake he was, the more things he had to take in. The Camp was looking like it always had, but he _felt_ it differently, like something was missing. The amount of faces around him was beginning to be overwhelming, as well as the noises. He wasn’t sure if his head could take so much information as once. His senses weren’t working properly, suddenly being bombed from everywhere, too many voices, to many faces, too many smells. He completely missed Jihoon getting on the boat and putting his arms around his neck, carrying him into Athena’s Cabin with the help of Woojin while Jisung made sure everyone stayed away. Dongho and Jonghyun securing that no one was there when they rushed Minhyun inside, laying him on his bed.

His tiny portion of the cabin remained just as he left it Athena-knows-how-many months ago. Obviously, his friends had been taking care of it, cleaning it and probably tidying it up from time to time, because it was almost unnatural the state it was in. Minhyun could feel the worrying looks from his friends, who probably wondered his whereabouts. He wanted to answer, but his head was spinning, so he fell asleep again.

Throughout the night he woke up numerous times, missing a soft summer breeze and the reflection of marble.

Completely rested, he opened his eyes the next morning. The first thing he caught was Jinyoung –who shouldn’t be allowed to sleep in the Cabin, like his clothes gave away he did. He was sitting on an uncomfortable looking chair, barely big enough for his tiny body (which was saying something), eyes fixated on Minhyun, a smile sheepishly appearing on his face when the son of Athena woke up.

“What are you doing here? By Athena, Bae Jinyoung you should be sleeping in your cabin and not sitting uncomfortably in mine!”

The demigod couldn’t help the nagging. It was second nature to him when he was with his younger friends, the impulse to _help them_ taking over his body. Jinyoung in specific, was more like a brother than a friend at that point, having been one of the few who had met his blood family and had spent some time in his house. They had hit it off since they met, Minhyun wanting to take the younger one under his wing. The grey-haired had acted quietly around him at first, for he was very shy and didn’t open up easily. Somehow, the older of the two had managed to warm the other up and the younger had begun to look up to and confide in him.

Jinyoung was a son of Aphrodite, very charming and clever. He was also really quick to catch up in what was happening in everyone’s love life, Minhyun still remembered how he never acted surprised when a relationship was made public, admitting he had known even since before it developed when Minhyun asked him. At the beginning, he never spoke about it, but over the years he had acquired a taste for the gossip, constantly dissecting everyone with Daehwi. Those two were something else entirely, and Minhyun found very funny how, despite everyone being aware of their relationship, they acted like their romance was a secret. Looking at the kid, he realised how much he had missed them.

Suddenly, a mop of dusty coloured hair was clouding his vision, Jinyoung’s arms holding him strongly, like he would disappear. He was surprised at first because of the abrupt show of affection, but his arms reacted automatically, wrapping around the body of the other bringing him closer. Warmness and familiarity took over his body, and Jinyoung even let himself be smooched in the cheek by Minhyun, who has grinning non-stop, pushing Seongwoo to the back of his mind for a while.

Moments later, the stance became full of people. His friends and mentors were there, and the raven-haired could see in their faces how curious they were, even if they didn’t ask (yet). He let them be, because he was not quite ready.

Since Jinyoung had refused to let him leave the bed (‘ _Bae Jinyoung, I’m not_ sick. _And also, I’m older than you and you absolutely can not order me around.’_ ‘ _Hwang Minhyun, I don’t care’)_ , everyone was crowding around the crib and he thanked Athena for not being claustrophobic. Jihoon sat at his feet, observing him with a warm smile that was quite unusual –only in its duration, Jinyoung still on the chair except he was somehow sharing it with Daehwi, Woojin was being loud from the ground, and Guanlin was kneeling by him, offering to bring him food, drinks, games or whatever he could imagine. By the door were Jisung, Jonghyun and Dongho, chatting animatedly, happiness radiating from every word. Jaehwan had just arrived, making a mess of the room as he kicked a vase when he walked in, causing Daehwi to sigh. Laying on the contiguous wall was Sungwoon, his small frame being held by a beaming Daniel. Everyone was there, except he felt the absence of someone who was never in that world.

He was put up to date by his friends, even if they all tried to do it at once and the task at hand became harder than it should’ve been if they could only take turns. It was so funny, because everyone was eager to talk to Minhyun. Apparently, he had been out for almost 5 months, though he was sure it had been way less, but well, it was not like he had been counting, unlike his campmates. Shortly after he had failed to retrieve the counter-spell, Nayoung from Ares’ cabin had offered herself to go in his place, effectively managing to do so. They had assumed Minhyun had gone under armed into the mission, so she carried Celestial Bronze with her. Properly equipped, she had killed the Empousai that had been set to protect the enchantment and made her way back. Then, Daehwi and Krystal were given the task of effectively applying it. Two or three days after, the cabin was safe again and as a bonus the Camp had another magic barrier, a gift Hecate had left them for the nuisance. Minhyun was very happy to hear that, as it had been one of his biggest worries back in Ogygia.

The most interesting discussion of the day was the one that followed. In Minhyun’s absence there must’ve been some kind of hormonal outbreak because everyone was dating everyone. It was ridiculous, really. And even more ridiculous was their friend’s determination in absolutely not telling him who was dating who. It will be a game, they said. So, now, he just walked –looked, because he still hadn’t moved out of bed- around wondering. For example, in his mind Jihoon was dating at least three different people and it was maddening. But fun, so it was just what he needed.

The rest of his first day back was spent like that, between his friends and shared laughter.

At some point, Jinyoung had to let him get out of the bed and the cabin as well, upon many insisting and promising to go with him everywhere. For some reason, the younger didn’t seem to understand that Minhyun, despite having been out for five months, had been doing nothing but resting, not been exposed to any danger –okay, maybe some danger considering he had been sent to Ogygia because he had almost _died_ in the first place. (‘ _I’m not going to disappear, Baejin.’_ Minhyun exclaimed exasperatedly when he was pushed back into the bed for the umptieth time. _‘Like I’m supposed to believe you!’_ His friend said, pursing his lips and sitting on top of Minhyun’s tummy.)

It was around six in the afternoon, guessing by the position of the sun, still hours away from setting. The noises around him weren’t so overwhelming anymore, rather turned into pleasant hums. If he paid enough attention he could listen to the conversations taking place all over. His friends’ voices trying to speak over the other, in some kind of competition where the loudest of them was the winner (Woojin was _definitely_ taking the prize, but Jaehwan was a worthy runner up). Their supervisor Boa, a well-known Ares born hero who had survived through at least two wars and an attempt was around them, and Minhyun approached with a quick pace before she was nowhere to be found.

“Director Boa!”

The raven-haired said, stopping the woman on her tracks. She turned around, smiling warmly at the camper once she realised who he was. It had been less than a day since he arrived, and no one had asked him about his whereabouts, even if he _sensed_ how everyone was dying to know. The strangest of things was that not even the Director inquired about it, and, not to be annoying, but it was supposed to be her job. Making display of his great sense of responsibility, he was the one to approach her to come clean. He couldn’t speak for the totality of the five months, but he guessed it had probably something to do with the correlation of Ogygia’s time and earth’s time, it running faster on the latter of the two. That would make up for the three and a half months that were lost in translation, or so to say.

“I don’t know how to begin, but I’m okay? And sorry that I never made it to the place where the counter-spell was hidden.” Minhyun stopped talking. Standing in front of Boa was intimidating and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to tell her about Seongwoo just yet, and if she should be the first one to hear about his _love story_ . But he would just omit that. “I’m also sorry because I had no idea how to contact you, mostly because I didn’t have any idea where I was. Sure, maybe I could’ve tried to send an Iris message but I didn’t have the means, I think.” He took a deep breath, knowing that the following would be the hardest. “I was attacked by an Empousa, and I had no option but jumping from the flying plane. That was stupid, but I somehow lived and ended up at Ogygia. And I was, um, taken care of once there. All my wounds were tended and I was fed and rested. I-I tried to come back sooner, but I promise you there was no way out? My mother refused to help me. At least directly. So, I don’t know how long it was since we-“Minhyun stopped to correct himself, realising that only _he_ was _back_. “I found my way to the camp. So, I’ve been okay, more than okay during all this time? But I kind of can’t explain being away for so long because it was only a month and a half for me.” He stopped talking again, his story being finished and all. His eyes were fixated on Boa, expecting something. A word, a reaction. The Director just stared at him without saying anything. “And I have nothing else to say?”

There were about ten seconds of complete silence before the Director just smiled at him. A comforting hand patting him on the shoulder and honestly it was making him nervous all that expectation because you don’t just dump that you’ve been on a magical island onto someone’s lap and they stay quiet. Boa did, though, acting like he had heard the most common story, just another day at the office.

“I know.”

What? That was something the demigod didn’t see coming. No wonder she didn’t act surprised, she just wasn’t. He took a deep breath to calm himself, because Boa knowing despite him not having told a soul required it. He was a practical man, and ideas and connection took no time to appear on his head, but it took a while for him to link the Director of the Camp and the Gods themselves. Of course, she was in constant communication, especially after the war, so, they must’ve told her. The idea of Boa not telling anyone and just letting his friends’ mind run wild making things up concerning his state was annoying to say the least, and plain mean if he was feeling dramatic. Another thing that bugged him was everyone God being aware of his whereabouts but still doing nothing to help him, because he was sure at least _one_ of them could do something, even if his mother couldn’t.

He was home now, anyway, and he would try not to look too much into the Olympus’ utter incompetence or just ill-natured actions. He scoffed, and clenched his hand into a fist. Hwang Minhyun’s pettiness was actually not something he could very well control, and his blood was boiling, it didn’t matter how much he tried to stop it from doing so. If his whole self asked to be mad at the world, then so be it. Boa’s voice suddenly interrupted his train of thought, and he forced himself to look up to her with the fakest smile he had ever faked.

“As soon as you prayed to Aphrodite to save you and she made sure you arrived at Ogygia safely, she sent Hermes to the Camp. The Olympus has a clear view of everything going on in here, and well, they usually don’t pay too much attention, but since this was a matter that concerned them, they had Iris supervising us. Hecate’s spell would create a level of havoc that doesn’t benefit them in the slightest either.” And here I believed they cared about their offspring even if it was just a bit, Minhyun thought. “Knowing that once in Ogygia you couldn’t contact us and that if we got no confirmation of your status we would sent a team to help you instead of someone to retrieve the spell, they made sure we knew you were alive and well. The magical island chapter of the story was carefully excluded, and I only found out because it slipped my father’s mouth. Which is why none of your friends have any idea of what you’ve been up to, I couldn’t go around proclaiming information not even _I_ am supposed to have. You don’t have to let anyone know of your stay in Ogygia, as I am sure it might’ve been a traumatic experience you don’t wish to relive.”

He silently nodded in understanding, muffling a half-felt ‘thank you’ under his breath and waved Boa good-bye. His friends sat around where the bonfire usually started during the nights, chatting animatedly until Minhyun arrived. Jinyoung moved to the side, making space for him to seat, retaking the conversation once he was properly established. In their friendship, it was always Minhyun the clingy one –in every relationship of his, really— but this time, the younger one was sliding himself under his arm, embracing his waist and resting his head on the elder’s chest. A warm smile spread all over his face, softly caressing the boy’s hair.

“There is absolutely no way ambrosia is a good pizza topping, Woojin!”

Jisung seemed even offended by the mere idea of mixing the two. Minhyun had missed them, the borderline dumb and insane conversations they held. Most of the time, they had no idea how they had reached a point where they discussed the most various of things. It didn’t matter, because they were never mean to one another and the motive behind their words always ended up being pure humour. Of course, they also had their serious moments, but what they needed after the horrors of the battle that still scorched their hearts was laugh.

“Maybe on a sweet pizza?”

Jihoon said, shyly and like he was not really sure of why was he even saying that on the first place. Things escalated quickly, with the elder of them throwing Woojin something akin a jelly, effectively hitting him in the head. The purple-haired yelled something about not coercing his boyfriend into agreeing with his nonsense and their whole group of friends jumped to Jisung’s neck because he had revealed in front of Minhyun one of the couples. ‘You’re no fun, Yoon Jisung’ left everyone’s mouth collectively, and even Jinyoung who had almost fallen asleep on Minhyun joined them in the roast Jisung festival.

Behind his friends’ figures the Sun was hiding, and his head thought back to Seongwoo. The gorgeous sunsets of Ogygia flashing in his mind and the warm presence of the titan making its absence painful in his life.

Seongwoo would love his friends, some were loud and obnoxious, and others were shy and closed off. Some liked to gather everyone’s attention, and other stuck to the sides. But every single one of them could be deemed the most caring person Minhyun had ever met, the goodness of their hearts showing in everything they did. All of them showed their love in their unique way, like Minhyun’s own nagging and clinginess, or Jaehwan acting the dumbest he could just to make them feel good. They were as variate as they come, but was no exception, all of them felt they were tight as a family.

It was dark enough for them to light the bonfire, and Minhyun was excited about it. Yes, he had lit some on fire back in Ogygia with the titan but as much as he missed him right now, during the past month he had missed the warmth and familiarity of the Camp. It always managed to make its way into his heart, until he was radiating with love from the inside, drunk on the comfort and feeling of home.

At some point, Jinyoung had fell asleep on his lap, so Daniel was passing along roasted marshmallows to Minhyun. The sweetness melting on his mouth, paradise for his tastebuds. No other marshmallow in the world was as good as those they had in the Camp, he thought as he shoved at least three into his mouth at the same time. The blond demigod kept on passing them over and he had _no idea_ how he was roasting them so far considering he was eating a marshmallow per second at least.

Minhyun’s eyes were fixated on Daniel for no exact reason, his gaze just blank until the other snapped him out of it. He laughed, even laughing when he realised he had been staring too long, and Daniel was laughing with him. Seongwoo’s story with Daniel was brought up in his head, and he didn’t mean to stare again, but curiosity got the best of him. He was wondering about the other side of the story, and why the other had never done anything, the smile dying on his lips for a while.

His friend had been in the exact same situation he was now and, still, he had never heard about Seongwoo which was bugging him now that he stopped to think about it. Unless the titan had changed a lot in the span of months –less, because time ran slower on Ogygia—, his story deserved to be told a million times, narrated in full detail. The ugly details, the misplaced actions of Olympus, everything. Daniel’s first priority should’ve been making sure no one ever spoke wrongly of the man who had saved him back in the day and had now saved Minhyun as well. Instead, Daniel had let people bad-mouth Seongwoo, on top of not even trying to get him out of Ogygia. Minhyun could not find a single reason why, so he had to stop looking at Daniel, scared of the disappointment and resentment showing in his face. Out of instinct, his body snooped closer to Jinyoung’s sit, causing him to open his eyes for a second before sleeping soundly again.

“So,” Daehwi said, disrupting Minhyun’s thoughts. The boy’s facial expression was one all of them were acquittanced with enough to know it brought no good. “Minhyun, dear older brother, isn’t it time for you to tell us where on earth have you been?”

Minhyun held his breath. Was he ready? Even though he wanted to tell the world of Seongwoo, there was something on the story that made it so intimate that telling the whole world about it didn’t feel right. He couldn’t really pinpoint what was it that was clogging his throat as he tried to speak, drowning the words before his head could even formulate them. His last day in Ogygia flashed in his head, Seongwoo’s lips on his, their limbs entangled in the morning, a promise. It was theirs.

After a while, with countless eyes on him, he began the story, carefully leaving out everything that was his, Seongwoo’s and shared sunsets. He avoided the rosy hues the sky painted the world while his hands caressed the titan’s face. He forgot telling them about how the world had seemed to dance to the music from within Seongwoo, and how his lips had tasted sweeter than ambrosia. They didn’t need to know, anyway.

Instead, he did his best job on recalling the less important things. He downplayed a little bit on how he got to the island, because he had no intention to give Jinyoung any reason to put him on domiciliary arrest _again_ . Then, he continued on, telling them about his first meet with Seongwoo in detail, hands trying to cover his testicles and all ( _‘By the gods Minhyun just say dick!’_ , Jihoon shouted before blushing himself for saying dick out loud). He told them about the village, and how fascinating it had been for him since the second he had lain eyes on it, describing perfectly the way they reflected the orange rays of the Sun. Telling them about how Seongwoo had been the one to find him when he was lost had been a little harder, the other’s name physically hurting him.

He looked at Daniel when he name-dropped the titan for the first time, surprise and pain painted all over his face. Minhyun noticed Sungwoon’s hands quickly taking Daniel’s in his, and he had to look away, continuing with the story. No one reacted to that name, but he decided to switch it to _Ong_ , making everyone gasp in shock. ‘Isn’t he like awful?’ was the most asked question for the next ten minutes, but they quieted as his telling progressed. Minhyun admitted his heartbreak when Athena declined his petition for a way out, and how desperate and lost he had felt, even losing himself in the woods for real.

The dream about Daniel and the following conversation with Seongwoo was something he wanted to discuss with the other alone, so he jumped into the rest, there was much to tell anyway. He praised the titan incessantly, doing his best to paint the boy in other light, since he knew how misinformed his friends were. At some point, Daniel left, but Minhyun didn’t stop his chronicle. It was something worth telling.

He walked them through his long days unable to design the outline for the boat, and all the days before, when he didn’t even know how he was supposed to go. He told them about Atlas and the war, about Doyeon. It was hard to erase Daniel’s presence in the life of Seongwoo, because he had played a big role, but he managed to go over it. Maybe they noticed, maybe they didn’t, but it wasn’t his place to tell.

By the end of it, he had had to fight the tears off his eyes sometimes. Thankfully, no one mentioned it.

The rest of the time they stayed up and around the fire, the conversation revolved around Minhyun, an alluvion of questions he answered quickly. Most of them were actually about Seongwoo, for example, Jaehwan was truly invested in his physical state and hotness. Since Minhyun wasn’t a liar, he spent around three minutes describing how hot Seongwoo was in depth, leaving Jaehwan with more than what he asked for. Jihoon and Woojin were saying something in secret, earning a kick from Guanlin, but Minhyun missed that exchange completely (‘ _Jihoon, do you think Minhyun fell in love with_ Ong _?_ Woojin asked with some kind of disgust on his voice, not yet believing the titan they had been taught to fear was actually some kind of real-life piece of cake. _‘If he is, I just hope it doesn’t break his heart.’_ Woojin nodded, about to open his mouth again, but Guanlin kicked him into silence).

After a while, they collectively decided they were tired, and letting the bonfire to die, they went to bed. Jihoon and a very sleepy Jinyoung (really, how long did he stay awake just taking care of Minhyun the night before?) went into Aphrodite’s cabin, now painted in a soft pink –Jihoon’s doing with Tiffany’s allowance, probably—. Woojin entered the black bricked cabin that belonged to Hephaestus offspring. Sungwoon’s was a little on the side, where Dionysus’ children roamed.  Guanlin and Daehwi’s Cabins stood at the end, Nemesis and Hecate respectively while Jisung made his way to the beginning of the Camp where Demeter children slept. Daniel, Minhyun supposed, was already asleep inside Cabin number three. Minhyun himself was going to that wing of the Camp, chatting with Jaehwan as animatedly as he could due to the tiredness creeping in. Jaehwan was Apollo’s son, so their Cabins were contiguous and due to their best friends status –besides Jinyoung, Jaehwan had been the only other camper he had introduced to his family, sister included— they always walked back together.

“Minhyun,” Jaehwan called him before parting ways. “You know you can tell me everything, right?”

The raven-haired was taken aback a little, not expecting that at all. He knew, of course, that he could trust Jaehwan, and if he wanted to talk about Seongwoo, the boy would be the first he’d go to. But it felt wrong to do it before facing Daniel about the whole thing, so he just nodded, a soft “thank you, I know” leaving his lips. Jaehwan smiled warmly at him and entered the seventh cabin.

Everyone was asleep inside cabin number six, which he thanked. He needed some time alone after the mental exhaustion he had gotten from trying to put Ogygia’s experience into words, the task had proven itself to be hard, especially considering he didn’t feel entitled to tell the half of it. There were some moments where he had wanted to let more of his feelings out, marvelling on how strongly he had come to feel in such a little time. Seongwoo had been that person for him, and their relationship had developed organically, deviating from a slight dislike on Seongwoo’s side and just tolerance on his to a friendly banter that ended up being a deep connection between the two of them. It wasn’t just that the titan was handsome and nice, or that he had wanted to kiss him, but the level of confidence they had reached between the two, knowing he could’ve trusted the other with and for anything.

With Atlas’ son running around his mind, Minhyun went to sleep.

That night, he saw Seongwoo in his dreams. He was standing on the shore where they last saw each other, it was the brightest of mornings, the Sun rising and making the world come alive with him. It had been dark one second into the dream, but he was sure that his eyes would hurt if he opened his eyes right that second in Ogygia. The other man seemed to have been awake for a while, staring into the distance and letting the rays caress his skin. The remaining pieces of their ship sat messily behind Seongwoo, messier than when Minhyun left. It was as if a force had taken them, threw them in the air and blasted them, tossing pieces everywhere.

“I’ll miss you forever.”

Seongwoo said into the distance, no name was uttered, but Minhyun knew. ‘You won’t, because I’ll get you out or make you to go back to you’, he thought. Then, the scene changed, trying to morph into something else before turning black. The rest of the night was spent without dreams, but he woke up with Seongwoo occupying his every thought.

There was something else bugging him, though. Ever since the island, he had been having these weird real-life dreams, and he couldn’t help but wonder _how_. He was not a son of Hypnos, nor had he ever displayed any kind of foreseeing ability. Full of determination, his feet guided him to Hypnos’ cabin. Laying on the biggest bed was Kwon Yuri, Hypnos’ cabin counsellor. She was a mysterious girl, as no one ever knew what went through her head – except for maybe Im Yoona, counsellor of Hebe’s Cabin—. But she was very nice and fun to be around, he knew from the short encounters with her. He also knew she was very wise despite appearing aloof most of the time, being one of the most powerful demigods in the whole Camp.

“Yuri?”

He asked softly, cautiously approaching the bed. She seemed to be asleep, and it was quite early in the morning to be fair, but once he had called her it was too late to back out. Like she lived in slow-motion, her eyes opened gradually, until the brown irises stared into his own. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t a bit intimidated by her strong aura, but then she smiled, making everything seem sweet all of a sudden, easiness taking over his body. There was also sleepiness, and despite having been fully awake a second ago, he was about to slumber.

“Hello on this fine morning.”

She answered, her voice perfectly poised, not sounding like she just woke up at all. With her hand, she signalled for him to sit on the bed. It was comfortable, made of feathers and incredibly soft. His eyes were threatening to close.

“Did you want anything?”

It was curious, how Yuri always spoke when he was on the verge of falling asleep. Maybe it wasn’t, he couldn’t think properly on the state he was in. His head felt dizzy, like when one is sleep-drunk.

“Yes?”

He managed to say. Little by little, the world seemed clearer for some reason. His boy felt more awake by the second, feeling like he had just had a shot of espresso. He looked at Yuri in fear, but she was still looking warm and sweet. He would make a mental note never to mess with a Hypnos’ child.

“I actually want to ask you something, since Hypnos has some control over dreams and all that.” Yuri nodded. “I’ve been having some… dreams that show events that are happening or happened in the past which are useful to my life? And I’ve never have any kind of foreseeing ability or anything? I’m quite confused as to why this is happening.”

The girl chuckled, her eyes turning into crescents and a harmonic sound leaving her mouth.

“It’s my father’s way of saying sorry. You were the one my half-brother almost killed after all, and then you had to fight alongside Ares of all people to override him. He made Morpheus help you the only way he can, I guess. I am not one hundred percent sure, of course, but it would make perfect sense. Wouldn’t it?”

Minhyun wasn’t sure it was even possible, but he found himself unable to disagree. He nodded his enthusiastically a few times upon leaving the cabin. Once outside, his brain seemed to be _screaming_. He was never going to set foot on Hypnos’ cabin ever again. Yuri had been of help, though, and he would certainly use the dreams to his advantage. He had forgotten to ask her how to control them, but he was too scared to go back, so he just strolled around the camp.

He was basking in on everything he had not seen in a long time. The green trees that adorned the outside of the Cabins and were taken care of by Demeter’s children. The Big House and dining pavilion, standing as high as ever – but no longer as impressive, having seen the Greek village of Ogygia whose buildings shone and fascinated him—. The early birds singing in the distance, and the other kind of early birds getting out of the Cabins with their hairs messy and puffy faces.

All the way to the pavilion he was absentmindedly smiling.

“Hey! Minhyun!”

Lai Guanlin approached him with long strides. The boy had legs longer than Minhyun, since he was very tall despite his short age. The Nemesis’ child was impressive, not just because he was tall and handsome, but his personality as well. Like every Nemesis’ kid, he was loyal, the best ally one could ever wish for, but he also had this naïve quality to him that resulted quite intriguing. His ability to read people was outstanding, though, making it very easy for him to befriend only those who were worthy of it. That particular trait was extremely useful, and he always trusted Guanlin’s words if he told him to stay away from someone.

Minhyun didn’t need to stand still for long before the other had caught up to him, a big smile across his face. The other boy was also really warm, and reminded Minhyun of a _loving bear_ which okay, maybe he had never met a loving bear in real life but there were many in pop culture, so the point was made. They walked together to a table, the belief that everyone should sit with their blood long forgotten most of the time.

“How are you? I saw you coming out of Hypnos’ Cabin, having trouble sleeping?”

His friend asked him, genuinely concerned for him. Minhyun shook his head, denying with a tender expression.

“Okay, maybe this will sound, erm, weird but the thing is that I’ve been experiencing things?”

It was so so easy to fall back into routine. Minhyun had a tendency to overshare, not keeping his mouth close when left alone with the right people. In that case, Lai Guanlin was, indeed, the right people because the raven-haired trusted him enough to want to speak non-stop, and the kid was a good listener. Not as good as Jinyoung, but also not as _harshly honest_ so it was a push and pull to see which of the two was the best for Minhyun to lay his stories on.

“I’ve been having dreams where I see events that have happened or are happening. It’s been going on since I arrived at Ogygia, and these dreams always help me somehow. I figured that Hypnos being Morpheus, our dear dream lord’s father and all that, maybe the cabin counsellor could lend me a hand. And she did, kind of. But I am never ever going back there again.”

The other gave Minhyun his full attention as he spoke, making humming sounds here and there to assure he was immersed in whatever the elder was saying. Once he was done, Guanlin was cackling, gums out and all that. Minhyun had no idea what could’ve been so funny in his discourse, but it wasn’t that hard to make Guanlin laugh intensely anyway. In fact, he still remembered that one time Sungwoon got to the table and said he was short on arrows and Guanlin almost died from laughing so much (it wasn’t until a few days later that they found out Guanlin was cackling because Sungwoon really though he was short _on something_ and not just short). He was still confused, frowning at Guanlin with his eyebrow raised.

“I find it funny that you seem so scared of a Cabin. They’re Cabins!”

Minhyun fought the urge to facepalm and settled for letting out a big sigh instead.

“Look, this is why you’re not a son of Athena, you cannot grasp the things beyond what’s stated. It is _not_ a usual cabin, okay? It’s creepy and there’s like a substance in the air to make you sleep? I don’t know and I haven’t had time to look it up yet.”

Now Guanlin was serious, nodding like a puppy that wanted something. And he had no idea what, but when he elaborated on what Yuri had said Guanlin seemed pleased enough so he guessed that he only wanted the resolution to the Hypnos story.

“…so now I can visit other places, I guess? But I can’t foresee anything. I think.”

Guanlin scoffed, judgement hidden in his laugh. It sounded like he was calling Minhyun dumb and, honestly, he might sound dumb to a degree. Not being sure in what he could and couldn’t do was very unlike those supposed to have and treasure knowledge above all, but hey, he still had to actively search for information even if he had more easiness to absorb it.

“You _think_?”

He rolled his eyes, pursing his lips. Playfulness shone behind his eyes, reflecting Guanlin’s who was definitely teasing him, the mischief quality to his question not going unnoticed by the elder. Across the table, he managed to hit him in the right arm.

“Shut up, I haven’t tried anything, I mean, I haven’t slept since I’ve found out about my new powers! Ugh, respect these days!”

Minhyun said amusingly, pouting at the end of his statement, lips sticking out. Nemesis’ son was, once again, laughing loudly, hands clapping and all. The raven-haired wondered if maybe he had been appointed as the new alarm for the mornings, because the Camp seemed to be awakening to the sound of his friend’s smacking.

“How can I turn you off, Guanlin?”

A deep voice questioned from behind Minhyun. It wasn’t full of intonation, possibly from the sleepy tone it had, grogginess all over. The owner of said voice was Daniel, who was still in his pyjamas and made his way to the table. Tiny Spider-men adorned the clothes of the blond, they were obviously short for his frame, and they gave him an almost comical image that drifted off from how people usually thought Daniel was. Had Minhyun not known the other was a big puppy, he probably would’ve been swayed into thinking he was this intimidating fighter, but he knew better. Or so he thought, the pinch in his chest reminding him of the boy’s relationship with Seongwoo.

His eyes actively avoided Poseidon’s son when he approached the table, because he didn’t want to sit beside him, the resentment from his lack of action (and maybe from jealousy as well) scorching inside him. He took a deep breath, his nails digging onto the wooden table, and he faked a smile when the other had sat next to Guanlin, waving him hello. His thoughts muffled the voice of Guanlin, who called out to him, or at least repeated his name four times in a row. It wasn’t enough to snap Minhyun out of his abstraction, so Daniel leaned forward and shook him.

The raven-haired wasn’t sufficiently sensible to stop his face from darkening at the touch, the irritation shining through. Guanlin expression was one of confusion, and Daniel went through a variety of emotions: surprise, anger, sadness and finally settled for realisation as his hand retreated, eyes falling down just the corners of his mouth. Minhyun was feeling kind of guilty, like he had hit a cute puppy, but Daniel deserved none of his remorse, because he had shown none to Seongwoo. Still, the air had become too heavy for him to bear, so, he excused himself and left.

He wasn’t even done with his breakfast, so he cursed Kang Daniel under his breath. It had been his own fault but blaming himself was something Minhyun would never do. And the other had broken Seongwoo’s heart, so it was personal. Or maybe not, because he was definitely not Seongwoo. Except, whenever he remembered how the titan’s eyes had watered while he walked him through their relationship, he wanted to kill – maybe not kill— Daniel. Their relationship had burnt bright, intensely and still, he had never once mentioned his time in Ogygia. He had never made an attempt to defend Seongwoo, breaking apart the image of Ong. It wasn’t the _leaving_ that was wrong, he had left as well after all, but what came after. Minhyun’s mind was constantly trying to come up with a plan to get Seongwoo out, or reunite with him at the very least. Besides, he had told everyone about the other, about his kind personality and everything good he had done. He had spread the actual story of Seongwoo. Daniel had done any of that, and he had had the time for sure. So, he couldn’t look at the other with respect anymore.

(He knew it wasn’t Daniel’s duty to fix a history of messes and wrongdoings of Olympus, but wasn’t he supposed to at least _try_ ? Wasn’t he supposed to _care_?)

A hand took his wrist, forcing Minhyun to turn around and come face to face with Daniel himself. Minhyun’s eyes burnt with intensity, emotions threatening to explode and the other boy was looking almost intimidated.

“What’s your problem?”

Daniel asked, his tone dropping at the end like he had lost confidence in whatever he was saying. Minhyun shook his arm to loosen Daniel’s grip, turned around and kept on walking, signalling for the other to follow him. Honestly, he hadn’t thought about where to go, but he was subconsciously drawn to the “playground” (not really a playground, that was just how he called the place they usually had their battles). Minhyun rested his back against the walls, and Daniel stood in front of him, looking expectant.

“Seongwoo.”

The son of Athena said, a grunt leaving Daniel’s lips when he heard the name. His face didn’t even flinch at the titan’s mention and Minhyun had to remind himself several times that Daniel was his friend, and he was against violence except when absolutely necessary. Also, he was the mature, sensible hero, so he could not go around slapping his friends across the face just because they were being insensiti-

“You love him, don’t you?”

Wait what? Just who did he think he was? Minhyun couldn’t tolerate such an abrupt and unasked violation of his intimacy. Especially not right then when he wanted to fight Kang Daniel, which he could not do if he stopped to think about his feelings. The question had left him a bit shaken and taken aback, no words leaving his now dry throat.

“Contrary to what you might think, I felt something for him as well, but what was I supposed to do, huh? You didn’t stay either!”

Hook, line and sinker. Did Minhyun _truly_ have to go back to Camp Half-Blood? Maybe he could’ve just stayed with Seongwoo in Ogygia, instead, he had made the choice to left him. Just like everyone before him, and hell if he didn’t know that was what was hurting him the most. Was he not aware of his projection on Daniel? Yes, he was, but he was an expert in ignoring stuff that made his mind go dizzy and heavy. What if he had just stayed behind? The Camp had been safe anyway, and he knew. Sure, he hadn’t known for sure, but he had felt that what he saw in his dreams was reality, which turned out to be true. He still left, and he made sure he broke Seongwoo’s heart by giving in to his own selfishness, kissing the other like he was Minhyun’s moon and stars.

Honestly, fuck Kang Daniel.

“But I’m going back!”

The corpulent boy scoffed, growing visibly annoyed at Minhyun and who could blame him? The son of Athena was looking at him with something akin to hatred and holding him to grounds the man didn’t stand in himself.

“Sure you are.”

For five minutes, the conversation turned into Minhyun stating his intentions to go back while Daniel laughed bitterly and made it known he had cero confidence in the other boy ever making it. By the end of it, Minhyun was worn off, not understanding where the Daniel he knew was and why the boy was behaving like that.

“What would you know, huh? It’s not like you ever tried.”

The blond boy stared at him in silence, finally looking defeated. The shadow of a sad smile prying on his lips.

“You’re right about that, I never tried. When I came back, I tried to leave him behind, because the burden would be too big for me to bear. Is that what you want to hear? I’m sorry I didn’t care enough and put myself first. I’m sorry I never fought for a lost cause and lived my life instead. Ogygia is a dream Minhyun, and you can’t live in a dream. Will it always be my biggest ‘what if’? It will, it definitely will. Some days I still find myself wondering how my life would be if I had stayed behind, but I didn’t, _I couldn’t_ and neither could you. For your own good, I suggest you let go as well, before you go crazy.”

The more he spoke, the more Minhyun heart ached. The truth behind Daniel’s words was almost too painful to stomach, and the melancholic quality to them provided every syllable of a weight he didn’t want to carry. The son of Poseidon was laying his heart in front of Minhyun for the other to dissect it, to take its feelings and _believe him_. But he didn’t want to.

“Minhyun, I’m so sorry for not being the hero Seongwoo needed. But now, you cannot be that either. _No man finds Ogygia twice_.”

The raven-haired looked up, a spark of determination behind his eyes.

“Oh, just watch me.”

Kicking the ground with every step, he left. His heart was a mix of emotions, revolving and fighting to take control, no clear winner yet. One second he was mad, as mad as he had ever been. Mad at Daniel for being honest, mad at himself for not staying, mad at the Gods for putting Seongwoo there in the first place. Anger quickly shifted into absolute sadness, washing over his body and watering his eyes. It mixed with guilt, that tackled at his core and threatened to break him. In the end, there was determination left, and a hope Daniel had not quite managed to destroy.

It was still too early in the day for him to be dealing with so much, but honestly, every moment would be too early to deal with his feelings. He had tried to repress most of them most of the time, anyway, he would do it again.

His biggest wish at the moment was some kind of task, but the world was lethargic like it was deep in some kind of sombre sleep. Somehow, the bright day has darkened, grey cloud roaming around, and even if he knew it didn’t rain inside the camp, he swore he could almost _feel_ the water batting against his skin, soaking his clothes and washing the pains away.

In reality, he had walked into his cabin. Strangely enough, it was empty and Minhyun could walk around freely. He was shaking, his whole body quivering like he had walked into the coldest place in the world. It came from the inside, though, and he didn’t know how to fix it. Out of pure frustration, he hit the bed leg, hurting his big toe in the process. At least he knew where that pain was coming from. He blamed Kang Daniel for that one as well, cursing his name out loud over and over.

That was, until an obsidian mope of hair appeared behind the door, shyly at first, not giving a single care after. Ha Sungwoon entered the stance like he was the owner of it, all 166cm of him, chin high and eyes set on Minhyun. Despite his short height, there was something majestic about Sungwoon, no matter how cute he was either. The other man was a little bit older than Minhyun himself, and one of the first friends he had made on the camp. They had bonded over shared interests, and honestly, Sungwoon was really talkative, so Minhyun didn’t feel bad for being just as chatty himself. They had lived in Hermes’ Cabin together for a while, the both of them unclaimed when they arrived almost simultaneously at the camp. He had wished they could keep on sharing cabin, but Sungwoon had a mortal mother and deity parent, contrary from Minhyun. The identity of Sungwoon’s father _was_ a surprise though, as everyone had expected it to be Apollo but turned out to be Dionysus instead. Ah, how they had laughed back them, Jaehwan making fun of how they assumed if someone was to be the offspring of the God of Wine it would be him. Sungwoon was his first friend, anyway, the group kept on growing and they weren’t the tightest duo anymore –that would be probably the two demonic Parks—, but remained pretty close. Minhyun was someone Sungwoon always looked for during tough times, and he was glad to be that person.

In that moment, though, Minhyun didn’t want to see his friend because he had just had a fight with Sungwoon’s boyfriend after all. It was obvious whose side the other was going to take, wasn’t it? Nonetheless, it was not really Minhyun-like to shut people out and force them out of his cabin, besides, Sungwoon’s thick lips were on smiley mode, his bunny teeth showing. That meant peace and no fighting, so he guessed he was fine.

“Hey Min.”

Not many people were allowed to call him ‘Min’, it being only reserved to his family and closest friends, Sungwoon was obviously close enough. He sounded sad, letting his words drop, not a very cheerful intonation, causing Minhyun to look at him with a frown.

“So, you know, I guess?”

Minhyun said, watching the other nod and sit at his bed, patting the space beside him gesturing for the raven-haired to sit. It was quite strange to be invited to your own bed, but Sungwoon just had that way of taking possession of stuff easily. A hand pressed on his thigh as soon as he was accommodated, and he didn’t shy away from it. His friend’s presence was comforting to his debating heart.

“It’s you who doesn’t know, though. You don’t know half of it.” He said, sighing loudly. “Daniel is dumb, which I think you know. He’s dumb and doesn’t think stuff through. He’s not the best with words, and sometimes he’s too impulsive because he’s guided by feelings more than he is guided by his actual head, which leads to misunderstandings. I think you know all of that, and I think you know his enormous heart as well, so, for the sake of our friendship, I’m choosing to believe you haven’t started to deem my boyfriend, and I quote: _an insensitive, malicious dumbass_.” Minhyun shied away from the other’s stare. “That being said, Daniel has been trying to talk to you since you first told us you stranded in Ogygia, but he’s no inkt blind so he obviously saw your killing glances.” Minhyun tried to act surprised and offended, but Sungwoon shut him with a look. “And didn’t find the right moment. Once he did, he fucked up by not knowing what to say and spurting whatever came to mind. You weren’t exactly helpful either, being all offended and shit.” Sometimes he despised the shorter’s sincerity, because he didn’t mind giving you cold showers. Minhyun had had too many of those in his life from the same who was giving him another one right that moment. “What I want to say is, let me tell you what Daniel didn’t.”

Being rendered speechless by Sungwoon’s fiery grit, he nodded, listening attentively as the other related the story of one Kang Daniel. Some parts he knew, like how the other had disappeared in the middle of a fight, after being hurt one too many times. He could guess from experience that the hero probably _died_ in battle, one of the wounds being fatal and Poseidon being too invested to let him die. He had seen with his own two eyes how Daniel had arrived in Ogygia, with his armour still over his body and bleeding from the open cuts. Seongwoo had cured him, that he knew; they had fallen in love, that as well; Daniel left breaking Seongwoo’s heart in the process, he was very much aware. The rest of it, he had no idea. Sungwoon decided to take it from the beginning.

It had been an Arai who had taken the final blow at Daniel, whose body let blackness take over it until it didn’t, waking up to the soft summertime of Ogygia, big brown eyes looking at him and tending to his wounds attentively with many unguents made from stuff Daniel didn’t know and didn’t want to, anyway. His name was Seongwoo, the man had said after his hands engulfed the – he would later learn— titan’s tinier ones, the other had been warm, and Daniel had smiled at him sincerely before passing out. He had been woken up with the help of the brunet, and he thanked him about a hundred times. Quickly hitting it off with the other, they had left for a village that reminded Daniel of a better version of Camp Half-Blood and he followed Seongwoo into Seongwoo’s home. The first night, Daniel had already told the other his whole story, as well as the Camp’s. He had also opened his heart, and admitted out loud how afraid he was, and that he didn’t wished to go back and risk dying again. That night when he gave Seongwoo hope was the thing he regretted the most.

The following days were spent resting to heal completely, sleeping in Seongwoo’s room. The other had had nothing to do, so he spent most of the time with Daniel, except sunsets, the only time when Daniel was truly alone. Those minutes were when he thought of home, and all he could see were bunny teeth and obnoxious laughs. He cursed himself every sunset, trying to convince himself that he didn’t want to go back in the slightest. It wasn’t hard to do, with Seongwoo around, so completely charming, so perfect. Daniel would be lying if he said he didn’t fall for the titan, the warmth of his heart so completely magical. Seongwoo treated him with the outmost care, he always managed to make him smile and have a fun time despite being stranded on an island where nothing ever changed. They explored Ogygia together, stopping everyday to gaze at the stars that shone above them. The blond-haired recalled how bright Seongwoo’s eyes shone while he told him everything there was to know about the world he lived in. Sungwoon popped into his mind many times, and he fought the thought, because it wasn’t fair to the boy whose hair he was straddling right then. Daniel could feel something growing between the two, and he didn’t fight it, but he couldn’t deny that with every passing day, he wanted to leave even more, the fear of his own death turning into fear for everyone’s death and guilt if he didn’t help them.

In one of his lowest moments, he had subconsciously called for his father, or maybe he didn’t, but Poseidon was there in full grace. That night, Seongwoo had gone to bed earlier, leaving Daniel alone with his thoughts as the waves tingled his feet and the night covered him. It was like that how his father found him. The first thing the God had done was completely materialised, wearing a Hawaiian shirt and bermudas, no shoes. He sat beside Daniel, not saying anything, just waiting for his son to speak. And Daniel did, he laid his dilemma on his father, he told him how it was his duty as a hero to come back, and that he didn’t want to at the beginning, but now his heart was begging for him to return. The biggest problem was that he cared for Seongwoo too much, and didn’t want to leave him alone. Poseidon had promised he wouldn’t be alone for long and that he would vouch for the man to be freed from his prison, but that Daniel had no choice but to go back. The God was very serious about that, deeming his stay in the island as completely unacceptable, stating that he would take him by force, were it needed. It wouldn’t, because he wanted to leave anyway. Then, Poseidon told him about the curse, about Atlas, about the punishment.

“His fate is for heroes to get stranded on the island, heroes he can save. Heroes he will fall in love with, irremediably. But also, heroes who will never stay, because it is written that way. He is doomed to have his heart broken over and over. You can’t stay, but no one will ever be able to.”

Minhyun had to hold onto Sungwoon’s hand, the cruelty of everything being too much. He was doubting the mercy of the Olympus, having never heard a harsher punishment. Sure, Seongwoo’s father was holding the world on his shoulders, but he wasn’t cursed to fall in love only to get his heart broken over and over again. A single tear rolled down his face, and Sungwoon continued with the story.

Daniel had had the same question Minhyun had then, if there was a way to break Seongwoo free. Poseidon’s answer had been final, Ogygia changed its position every second, and it could only be found by the Gods, and not every time. For demigods, however, it was completely unfeasible. Sadly, the only way for Seongwoo to leave Ogygia, was for someone to return to him. The catch, however, was that no man could fin Ogygia twice.

“No one has even bothered to try.”

Minhyun said, spikes of anger and hurt showing on his voice. He said nothing but the truth, Doyeon had left without a care in the world, and Daniel had just believed his father blindly, which meant he wasn’t bothered to prove if his words were completely factual. Minhyun couldn’t blame him anymore, the annoyance and madness from before wearing off.

The rest of the story, he knew, but he heard Sungwoon anyway. He had nodded throughout the end, taking both of Sungwoon’s hands in his. A big ‘thank you’ left his lips once the other was done, some piece of mind restored to him.

“I hope you can be the first to find Ogygia twice, Minhyun.”

Sungwoon said before leaving the room. ‘I will, Sungwoon, I will’, the son of Athena thought, and he was sure of it.

With the mind a little clearer, he resolute that the sooner he made a plan, the sooner he would find Seongwoo. For that, he needed absolute silence, and he knew exactly where to find it. He left the cabin, making sure to close the door behind him and walked quickly into the woods. There were legends surrounding them, some said the Moirai could get through there, that the barrier was weaker. It wasn’t true, and the Moirai weren’t dangerous anyway –if you ignored the fact that they could cut your life short with their scissors.

Deep in the woods was some kind of… secret stone cabin. It was Woojin who had discovered it while he roamed the woods (he was a curious kid who never stopped moving) and showed everyone, their own hideout. With the passing of the years it had become more like a sanctuary for when they needed to find their peace of mind, and Minhyun thanked Athena that it was empty right then.

He sat on the cold stone of the floor, and rested his back against the rocky wall. Maybe it wasn’t the most comfortable of places, but it was _quiet_ , a tranquil quality to it he appreciated very much. It was the perfect place for his mind to come up with an idea, and he urged his brain to demonstrate that it was, indeed, Athena-made. The way it showed wasn’t exactly the one he had expected, Athena herself appearing on the cramped space, waving to him like it was the most common thing in the world. Her grey eyes focused on Minhyun’s brown ones, and he didn’t look apart.

“Hi, mom.”

He said, a rebellious quality to it that made her chuckle. She greeted Minhyun as well, a funny expression on her face.

“You called me, son. And here I am, no need to shout for me this time.”

His eyes widened, no recollection of calling her, but invocation worked in different ways, he supposed. Last time he had had to scream his lungs out, meanwhile that time he had to do nothing. The world worked in mysterious ways.

“What? I didn’t! I have a problem but I will solve this on my own. You have caused enough trouble already! Well, I don’t mean _you_ as in you mom but as in you the Gods. Yes.”

It was ridiculous, how he couldn’t make a proper sentence, but well, there was an Olympian right in front of him after all. It didn’t matter that his mother was sitting with her back arched, getting her white jeans and silver shirt full of dirt, she was still intimidating, the power exuding from every pore of her body.

“He was our enemy Minhyun, and he was punished for it, just like we have punished Morpheus, for example. And we were merciful, he would be in the Tartarus if we hadn’t.”

It was threatening, but there was also something else the demigod couldn’t quite catch.

“Don’t you think it’s cruel, mom? Sending me, and Daniel, and Doyeon. Wouldn’t solitude be enough? And why sent _me_? Do you think I don’t hurt as well?”

He said, tears pooling on his eyes, no matter how hard he fought them.

“No one ever hurt before.”

“Well, make it stop. Give him back to me. Take care of _this love_.”

Athena paused for five seconds, the longest in Minhyun’s life.

“That isn’t my area of expertise now, is it?”

Not even a second later, she was gone. She had smiled knowingly before leaving, as she contemplated the realisation of her words hitting Minhyun on the face, his face lit up and his brain bursting with ideas. It was time for Seongwoo to break free, he had been punished enough. Besides, she was not the type to let his son suffer.

“Mom, you’re so clever. I love you so much. You are amazing. Thank you.”

The demigod threw kissed to the air before stomping out of the place, messily. He had an idea, and he was going to see it to the end. He ran through the woods again, the greenery giving place to the wooden Cabins, the pink one calling Minhyun’s name like magic. Aphrodite, love. How could he not have had thought about it before?

“Jihoon, Jinyoung?”  
He called from the door, knocking a few times before sticking his head through the ajar gate. Jihoon had mumbled softly as an answer, he was still in bed, his now soft-pink hair looking like a nest. It was a bit late to be asleep, but well, he wasn’t Jihoon’s father anyway. Jinyoung wasn’t there, probably too busy having breakfast. The cherub-like boy lifted his back until he was sitting on his bed, looking –trying to— at Minhyun, his eyes puffed and face bloated. He still looked pretty, the sharpness he usually added to his features nowhere to be found.  
His friend couldn’t phrase properly, only mumbles and grumbles leaving his mouth as he looked around in confusion. It was his own fault for sleeping it, because it was almost eleven in the morning, he had had time enough for rise and shine, the early bird got the greatest… whatever, all that people said. Minhyun approached the bed, half expecting Jihoon to throw a pillow at his head –and he probably wouldn’t miss because Minhyun’s head was huge—, instead, the other rested his head on Minhyun’s lap once he was sit.  
“What do you want?”  
The raven-haired was sure the boy had wanted to sound at least annoying, but the grogginess in his voice made it even comical. Minhyun couldn’t help but pat his head full of fondness. His eyes gazed tenderly at his friend, a fatherly smile on his lips.  
“Actually…”  
He was feeling even guilty to disrupt the peacefulness of sleep that was settling in Jihoon again, but he did nonetheless.  
“I want to talk to your mother.”  
At this, Jihoon awoken fully, his body straight only to start laughing at Minhyun, tears falling from laughing too much and all that. The son of Athena hit him in the arm, exclaiming ‘Oi!’ out of frustration.  
“Listen Minhyun, even I am terrified of talking to her and she’s my mother. And you, of all people, want to talk to her.”  
Because he had the best timing in the world, Jinyoung walked into the room just in time to hear that part of the conversation. With a glare from the youngest of the three, Jihoon moved to make place for him, sitting with his legs crossed on top of the bed, beside Jihoon. They were both looking at him, and honestly, he was kind of weirded out.  
“Baejin, Minhyun wants to talk to mom.”  
Annoying kid#2 had the same reaction as annoying kid #1. Even worse, because he was saying something that sounded like ‘Minhyun you’re hilarious, truly’. It’s not like he could understand much between the larks. Minhyun rolled his eyes, asking if they were done being little shits until they stopped laughing in his face and had the decency to at least fake some respect.  
Once they were hushed, Minhyun began the story. Not the entirety of it, because they had already heard about Ogygia and all, instead, he just stated the obvious: He had fallen in love; Seongwoo couldn’t leave the island with him; he had to go back; the Olympus had said it was impossible to go back, but he had an idea (‘Oh lord, he has an idea Jihoon let’s run from him!’ ‘I’m tempted to follow you on that.’ Minhyun ignored the both of them. ‘Okay, you’re Aphrodite’s sons...’ Did you need the powers of Athena to figure that out?’ ‘Oh god, shut up!’). While he advanced, the both of them only commented stuff like, “Okay, are we to act surprised that you were in love with the prettiest boy whose face was made from marble and adorned by the Gods themselves with three stars or you realise you sounded pretty much in love whenever you mentioned his name?” or “If someone has to be too dumb they’re clever, it has to be you”. Maybe Minhyun loved them.  
“What do you plan to do, then?”  
Jihoon asked, the grey-haired boy resting his head on Jihoon’s shoulder, nodding absentmindedly. If Minhyun knew the other enough, which he did, he was probably trying to come up with the answer himself because he just worried like that.  
Minhyun told them their plan. In all honesty, he had just thought about it, appearing on his mind like a crazy thought, but it was the only thing he had formulated in days. It was a long shot, but it was worth trying, Seongwoo was worth trying. If it was love that got him so riddled, it would be love to get him out. He had never been a romantic –lie— nor a believer –more lies— so, soulmates and such were kind of the stuff of legends –something he had wanted but didn’t think he’d get—. Then, he had arrived at the camp, and thought that maybe, after all, the stuff of legends was reality, and if some myths were real, maybe all of them were. So, he had begun to trust he would find a soulmate, or at least that they existed, somewhere. Maybe he would walk past them on the street, but they would never even learn each other’s names; maybe he would fight against them in a war; maybe, hopefully, he would live a burning all-consuming love. And he had witness his friends find theirs, like when the Park duo had met, clicking instantly, one soft where the other was sharp, complementing each other so perfectly and bringing the best out of the opposite. So, he had allowed himself to hope for his soulmate.  
He hadn’t realised in Ogygia, but now, he was positive he had a soulmate, and it was Seongwoo.  
The sons of Aphrodite didn’t take their ears off him for the whole time he was speaking, all ‘Ohs’ and ‘Ahs’, perhaps a punch in his arm when he used Jihoon and Woojin as soulmate example –from Jinyoung, who was feeling offended it wasn’t his relationship with Daehwi. Jihoon had just looked flutered and speechless—. He explained that he hoped to get Aphrodite to help him, her being the goddess of love and all.  
“No offense Minhyun, but you’re kind of lame and she would find it too easy to toy with you? Like, she has fun playing with mortal’s feelings… may I remind you our rite of passage?”  
Jihoon said, looking concerned.  
“And your head is too big, maybe she won’t think you’re pretty enough.”  
The suddenly honey-colour haired pinched Jinyoung’s left leg, the boy jolting.  
“What? I’m telling the truth! He’s handsome, she’ll surely appreciate that but she makes fun of you Jihoon and you’re the prettiest around!”  
Jihoon shook his head, and Minhyun just looked stunted.  
“What he’s trying to say is, Aphrodite is hard to deal with. Trust us, we know.”  
“I don’t care at this point.”  
Minhyun answer was immediate and definite. So, his friends just wished him the best of luck. (‘Good luck, try to hide the size of your head!’ ‘Oh my god, Baejin stop!’)  
He had never contacted Aphrodite, but he had left the cabin full of tips and advice. So, following his friends’ council, he entered the woods for the second time that day. He found the flowery clearing, and sat in the middle of it. Like Jinyoung and Jihoon had said, it was beautiful, the asserted colours painting a sight for sore eyes, it was almost painful in a way that only nature could find, the brightness so intense it seemed surreal. He laid there, his eyes closed to block the sun from blinding him, and his hands feeling the flowers under him. He basked on the sensations, his body receiving information everywhere. The smells, the tact, the whole world around him.  
“Good morning, miss Aphrodite. I came to the most beautiful place I could find just because I needed to talk to you. I hope you can appreciate my effort or at least take mercy on me? I come to you with matter of the heart. Maybe a little gossipy, because love life always makes for gossip. Not that I think you are a gossipy person, well, goddess. Or that I have anything against gossipy, erm, entities. I am very gossipy myself, I should know. It’s just people who like to have information. Anyway, I’m deviating. And I don’t even know if you’re listening to me.  
What I wanted to say was, I know we’re supposed to find our soulmates on our own. And I did, at least I think I did, almost one hundred percent sure I did. So, I don’t need you to give me a name, I’m just… begging for your help. Please, miss Aphrodite, goddess of Beauty, sovereign of love, most perfect being to ever exist, help me find the way back to my soulmate.”  
Minhyun was feeling embarrassed. He wasn’t sure if Aphrodite was even there, and all of that empty flattering was making a furious red tone take over his face. He was one to give out compliments at every chance he could, just because he always thought highly of everyone. Right then, however, he was just spurting nonsense to try and convince a whole goddess to give him something without offering anything in return. If he thought about it too hard, it was a dumb idea, but even Athena had suggested for him to take the problem to someone better suited for it, which he was doing.  
“Not that I don’t appreciate your rhetoric talent, but I like my compliments to be heartfelt.”

The demigod almost died on the spot when he heard the voice. It was female, high-pitched but just enough, sweet in its diction, with a bit of a foreign accent, causing her to draw the words for too long, getting him hooked on the voice. Startled, he rolled on his belly (probably looking stupid) and stood up, shaking the flowers and grass off his body. In front of his eyes was the most beautiful being he had ever seen. Her hair was long and shiny, smooth waves falling down her back like a waterfall, carefully caressing her body. A summery white dress made of silk adorned her tiny frame, making her look ethereal. Her eyes were doing all the work on the angelic look, though. They were big and behind the almost black iris that emulated the darkness of the night, a million stars hid. If he hadn’t meant his compliments before, he sure did then.

“Poor thing, you seem surprised.”

The goddess said, approaching him with long although elegant steps. Longs legs drawing all attention to them, the sun glistening on them. The more he observed her, the prettier he was, some things he hadn’t noticed at first glance making themselves more visible, like how she exuded warmness, or the way her hair caught the rays from the brightest star, the chocolatey tone more vivid than before. She smelt of freshness and fruits, as well as something he could not put his finger on but made him want to approach her.

For a few minutes, he tried to find the words to speak, but his throat had dried out.

“You’re cute.” The goddess said, approaching him. “And you’re certainly lucky that I _like_ you, and that my sons are always talking about you. Really, Jinyoung spent at least twenty minutes praising you and your family after he came back from your house, even asked me if Sujin was actually my daughter.

Oh, don’t act so surprised that I spent time with my sons! I am a loving entity; did you know love was the strongest of all forces? The only one strong enough to bring even Gods to their knees.”

The sound of her chuckle was, as expected, magical. It was like a melodic chirp, like the rhythm made by nature itself as water dripped, like the first sizzle of the spring. Cheerful, beautiful. The kind of laugh that made someone wish they could hear it forever.

“That is also why I will help you, Hwang Minhyun. Except I can’t do your job for you, nor I will ask the pain-in-the-ass I have for a husband for his help. Everything I will do is give you this.”

She said, dropping a heart-shaped bottle into his hands, a rosy liquid that resembled the sunsets he had loved back in Ogygia moving inside. Minhyun shifted his eyes from the recipient to the goddess, still not finding the words to speak.

“You have a ship already, but you need something to guide you, something that will help you find _your_ north.” She said, like he was waiting for Minhyun to say something, receiving only silence and a mouth that couldn’t quite close. “Please, I liked you better when you were being chatty all on your own. You’re no fun like this!”

She chuckled one last time, turning around and going out of the woods, where the camp was. In her wake, she left a stunned Minhyun behind and he swore he could hear how hard Athena facepalmed at his simplicity.

He fidgeted with the tiny jug on his hands, careful not to break it. He wasn’t prone to being clumsy, but just because he would probably shatter it. He had no idea what to do with it, though, because there wasn’t enough liquid on it to… spray the ship with it, for example. So, he guessed that was not what Aphrodite had meant it for. He had to use it on something small that would help him find his way, situate his north. He was struck by his own dumbness sometimes. A compass, he had to build a compass and magnetize it with the pink substance.

This time, he didn’t question how hard it could be to build a compass, his previous cockiness in designing a ship proving itself to be embarrassing. Instead, he went for Hephaestus cabin, catching a glimpse of a brunette inside a cabin, the camp suddenly filled with some fruity aromata. Shaking his head, he walked fast to Woojin’s instance.

On his way, he found Daniel. The blond guy was sitting on a bench near his own cabin, and Minhyun felt compelled to go and talk to him, the most pressing matter being pushed aside for a second. He sat behind the other, and simply said sorry. Daniel, as always, was accepting and sweet, apologizing to Minhyun as well. Maybe it happened because he was feeling hopeful, but he didn’t want to leave for Ogygia –and he was sure he would leave because Woojin would build the compass— in a bad note. The other was coerced to leave and forget, and honestly, it _was_ easier to do so. Besides, he wouldn’t have forgave him for breaking Sungwoon’s heart if he had stayed behind. (And deep down, he let it go because, had he not returned, Minhyun would’ve never met Seongwoo.)

The feisty boy was unusually quiet as Minhyun set foot into the black, forgery-like house of Woojin’s. There weren’t many children of Hephaestus lately, legend got it that he had found himself some kind of celestial mistress and wasn’t bored anymore. If that was true he had no idea, what he did know is that apparently a long time ago there were lots of his kind running around and now… not so many. No one cared, so they didn’t pry, but there was a certain god (Dionysus) who loved to gossip with some kids (namely, Sungwoon, Jinyoung and Daehwi). Olympic loves were always juicy, but Hephaestus always appeared Minhyun as a good guy so he didn’t want to know. His few children didn’t either.

“You had an idea.”

Woojin said, sitting on the ground. He was stating, not asking. His eyes lifted from whatever he was playing with, and shifted from Minhyun to his side. It’s not that the other was a man of little words, au contraire, but there were moments when he concentrated _so hard_ on stuff his brain only sent energy to it. In that moment, Minhyun couldn’t get a peek of whatever that was, but it was tiny and intricate.

“Jihoon told me. I knew it would end up becoming a burden _to me_ because, let’s face, when does it not? And I’m not saying I’m bothered, I am just laying the obvious and saving you the awkwardness I know you feel when you ask for a favour. So, yes, I will help you. In fact, I’ve been helping you unknowingly for days, I think?”

That was the Woojin he knew, words coming out of his mouth as quick as his thoughts.

“You see, I see something that can be improved and I improve it, so I’m turning, well, more like have already turned, sorry for not asking for permission, your… uh, attempt at naval construction into something that resembles an actual ship. I even incorporated a motor, and don’t asked me about how I had time to do so, because I don’t know myself, I was just invested. And while I’m hoping that an upgrade on your boat is what you’re after I have the feeling that it isn’t, is it?”

He looked at Minhyun, his eyes opened and expecting. His expressions were so easy to read, and right then he was just questioning, no malice nor tiredness behind his eyes.

“I need a compass, and I need it to be polarized on a magical love liquor or whatever Aphrodite gave me.”

Woojin extended his hand, like calling for Minhyun to give him the rosy recipient. He put it on his hand. They were calloused and rough, but the way he took the vial revealed his work ethic. He just treated everything with the outmost care, despite his tough appearance. He turned it in his fingers, letting the sun cross through it with difficulty. It wasn’t dense, and Minhyun could see through it, so it wasn’t opaque, and still, it blocked the light. Woojin hummed before putting it on the floor and asking Minhyun for his tools.

“It won’t take much, but you might want to call Jihoon or Jinyoung and maybe the pain that is Daehwi. This is love magic or something, and I don’t really master in that stuff, man.”

Minhyun tittered, shaking his head as he left the cabin. From there he had a clear view of the bonfire’s proximity, Daehwi’s favourite place of the camp following just behind wherever Jinyoung was at the time. The orange-haired noticed him, waving energetically. He was always full of vivacity, the exception to the rule that dictated all Hecate offspring were dark and scary. His friend was definitely not dark at all, always living with a vim that competed with that of hyper puppy Daniel or Jaehwan. Scary… that he could be, so powerful he didn’t even know the extent of his powers yet. And he was so determined and greedy he could be dangerous, in that he definitely took after his mother.

Once he reached the smaller boy, they greeted each other, not taking long before Daehwi noticed Minhyun was after something and offered himself to help, just like Woojin had done. When asked why, he just said that Minhyun was going to leave anyway, or so he had hoped. He also thanked him for clearing Seongwoo’s name, and inquired about his magic abilities. For a second, Minhyun was caught off guard, but then he made the connections. Of course, Hecate’s children would favour the powerful magical users, of course they would _know_ about Ogygia and Ong. Daehwi’s eyes glistened with knowledge when Minhyun looked at him, feeling intimidated for a second.

They went looking for Jinyoung, even though Daehwi insisted he knew enough about love spells to be able to do it himself. The grey-haired agreed immediately, wanting to help Minhyun the more he could. So, the three of them returned to the dark cabin number nine, where Woojin had already laid out on his working table lots of artefacts and tools Minhyun had no idea what they were useful for. Woojin looked at little disappointed it was Jinyoung with them and not Jihoon, but the latter was eating and Hades upon them if they tried to interrupt him.

Daehwi’s gaze lingered on the vial, sparking with curiosity. Nonetheless, it was Jinyoung who asked first. Minhyun didn’t get to answer, because the orange-haired figured it out before he had time to open his mouth.

“How did you manage to get Aphrodite to hand you this so easily? By Hecate, Hwang Minhyun, you’re like… the luckiest guy in the world?! Jinyoung, your mother just handed our friend here a vial of her _tears_ . It is said, that when Aphrodite is so happy she cries, her tears would help people find their true loves, _their soulmates_. No one ever found out how exactly it worked, so, no matter how they messed with the tears, it always backfired and they ended up alone. However, if it was Aphrodite herself that offered them to you, she must’ve explained, didn’t she?”

Minhyun possessed way more information he did a minute ago, and he just looked at the boy in surprise. He just shrugged, it had to do with magic and the policy in his cabin was study or leave. The raven-haired shook his head anyway, walking them through his conversation with the goddess (Jinyoung blushing when he was mentioned and thanked by Minhyun). By the end of it, all of them were sure she had indeed intended for him to make a compass, and for Woojin to help him (no other reason she would mention Hephaestus for). Daehwi and Jinyoung were out of the picture, though, the former being sure it was Minhyun who should mess with the liquid.

The couple stayed in the room for moral support as Woojin guided Minhyun through the process of polarizing. First, he poured the tears into a glass plate deep enough for them not to fall out. Then, he picked out the magnetic needles Woojin had kindly provided. Thirdly, he submerged it in the rosy liquor, watching it turn around crazily before setting itself. Woojin thought it was polarized, so he suggested for Minhyun to be the one to take it out of it as well. He couldn’t when he tried, so in a rushed idea, he took what the “mechanic” had called the body of the compass and submerged it in it as well. Minhyun closed it, and the liquid disappeared, only a now pink compass on his hands.

The three guys were looking at him with shock and astonishment.

“Not what I would’ve done, but since you’re Hwang Minhyun, of course it worked.”

Woojin said, a grin on his lips. Minhyun gripped the compass on his hands, tightly, and smiled at his friends, thanking them at least ten times. Soundly, he decided he would leave that afternoon, not sure of how long the charm would last. The needle in the compass was already moving like crazy, standing still for less than half an hour. Before leaving the cabin, he asked Woojin if he could, perhaps, build him the faster engine ever. ( _‘Already done it, what did you think I meant by revamping your boat?’_ )

He packed nothing, all he did for the next two hours was gather bravery and determination. Around five, he gathered all of his friends around the bonfire. Woojin and Jihoon sat side to side, holding hands like no one was looking. Besides them, Jaehwan tapped his feet nervously, not paying the slightest attention to an equally nervous Jisung. Guanlin chatted animatedly with Daniel and Sungwoon, the three of them sitting in the same bench. Daniel’s head rested on Sungwoon’s shoulder, which was bound to be uncomfortable but it seemed to be the blond’s favourite place. Jinyoung was right beside Minhyun, having not left his side for an hour. Minhyun wasn’t used to the clinginess that didn’t come _from_ himself. Daehwi, who sat across them had an unreadable expression.

“Guys, I’m leaving.” He began, no need to sugar-coat it. Some of them were shocked (Jisung was priceless), but most of them had… figure it out or directly knew about it. “But I’m coming back. You know how I told you about Ogygia, about Seongwoo. Honestly, I think” he corrected himself “I promised I would go back. And I’m not the type to break a promise, nor I wish to break this one. I’m getting Seongwoo out of Ogygia, and I’m coming back. I promise that to you as well, so now I have to do it.”

Daniel stood up, walking up to Minhyun, his hand stretched out to him. The raven-haired took it, standing up as well. The boy took him for a hug, and they stood like that for a minute, patting their backs for comfort.

“Good luck, man, you better hurry up.”

And they laughed, his friends taking turns in embracing him tightly, voices wishing him luck sincerely. They walked to the shore, where his ship was. He didn’t recognize him at first. Woojin had done an amazing job at revamping it, the engine’s “room” being noticeable when compared with what he and Seongwoo had built back in Ogygia. He had even painted it in an elegant brown and gold, a dash of pink as well, but that was probably Jihoon’s doing –because Woojin always let the other have his way—. If he looked at it for more than a second, it was so obviously his and Seongwoo’s that he felt even more eager to sail.

With a big sigh, he waved them goodbye once again, carefully stepping into the clipper. He put the compass on the wheel. It had seemed to settle down on the north, his north. With a smile, he started the engine and sailed into the sunset.

He had no idea if he was right, if he had had a crazy idea that would get him nowhere. He was not sure about his chances. He knew one thing, Seongwoo was worth trying. For the other, he would cruise the seas and the oceans, the sun burning on his back and painting the sky with hues of purple, blue, pink. He would float under the stars and the moon, the same stars and moons that reigned over Ogygia. He felt a summer breeze pass him through as the firmament displayed its whole palette before his eyes.

The compass had not yet shifted its direction, and the more his ship broke the waves under him, the more he was positive the one waiting for him once the compass broke would be Seongwoo. He saw the other’s face clearly on his mind, smiling so brightly the Sun would be jealous because it would appear dark beside it.

His mind was going all sappy, but that was what he always expected of love and soulmates. He chuckled at himself, and he swore he heard someone tell him he was doing amazing, even calling him sweetie.

With his heart bursting, he kept guiding the sail over the deep, which now reflected the most beautiful sky. It wasn’t dark, yet he could clearly see three dots on the blue, stars guiding him home, to Seongwoo.

 

 

* * *

 

 

_fifth act: Ogygia_

SEONGWOO.

 

He was sure the days weren’t becoming longer just because Minhyun had left a watch behind. But for him, every moment until the sunset was stretched into eternity since the raven-haired left. He should’ve been used to all of it by now, but every time he fell harder for the hero. Maybe that was part of his punishment as well, every hero better suited for him than the one before. He huffed, sitting inside the cave.

When he had finally felt like leaving the shore, he had made one final bonfire with the remnant of the ship, once it was nothing but ashes, he had made the wind take it far away from him, as if it his pain left in it as well (it didn’t). Then, he had composed himself, and wandered around the island, that seemed eerily quiet without Minhyun’s voice. He had avoided the places where he had made the best memories, and he considered causing an avalanche to bury the clearing where he first fell in love. In the end, he decided to leave it untouched, even protecting it with a layer of magic. Being utterly broken had helped his powers to increase, even making stuff fly in his sleep.

He had tried to avoid the village as well, but it was right in the middle of just about everything, so he ended up stumbling upon it. The buildings looked… older than they had about two days ago. In millennia, they had never gotten any dust on them, not a sign of the passing of time. All of a sudden, a huge spider’s web hung from the ceiling of the one that had been Minhyun’s, whose façade was beginning to _crack_. There was also something else, a stillness that made his hairs stand on edge. He quickly noticed what it was.

The fountain had stopped working again.

“I’m not working either, old friend.”

He had laughed, not a pure laugh, it had been maniac, scary. Desperate. He had turned around, and the house that held their memories inside crumbled to pieces.

He still paraded aimlessly, until he had ended up on the cave where he ignored the sunset then. His eyes traced the ceiling again and again, like there was something to be found he hadn’t memorised yet. He could actually accurately draw a map of Ogygia, with every corner, every tree, every secret. Had he known how to paint, his hands would be able to create the most beautiful landscape with a precision that would scare the best of painters. There were times like those, when he felt so utterly alone and empty, that he wished for the Olympus to take mercy and just kill him already.

Minhyun had been the last straw, he thought. He had managed to stay sane during the other two heartbreaks, and after Daniel he had been… better than he had been after Doyeon, so he had the wishful thinking that _maybe_ he had gotten better at it. However, he couldn’t foresee that last blow. The demigod’s not-so-perfect behaviour was what caught him in the end, he fell for the imperfections, for the edges, for the flawed. He was enamoured of the way the demigod had been oblivious, but bright; sweet, but witty and quick-mouthed. He had been charmed by the crescents of his eyes when he smiled for real; for the deep sound of his laugh. He knew there was no return when his heart had burst on the soft touches, shared looks, the way his name sounded on Minhyun’s mouth, their limbs entangled through the night. Despite the pain, he didn’t wish for the hero to have never stranded on Ogygia, he was worth an eternity of longing.

He rolled on the bed, facing the floor.

“Haven’t I suffered enough, huge egomaniacs in the highest mountain? What else do you want me to go through? How will the next one make me feel? Will I resort to carving my heart out with my newfound magic?”

He gruntled, mad at the world. His hand hurt from the blow he had just thrown at the rock, but at least that pain was better than the one inside. Honestly, what went on inside his heart was completely awful at times, tearing him apart. However, numbness was eviler, and made him feel like he would never feel anything ever again. Seongwoo was immortal, but he was still ruled by emotions, what he treasured the most. Feelings, emotions thoughts, those were his, and no one had a say on those. Olympus could punish him, banish him, throw him in an island, but he was still himself, because he still had his sentiments. Numbness deprived him of those, draining him of his essence, and he could not deal with that.

He dreaded it, and those were the moments when he felt like finding a crazy idea to just _cease_.

He sighed, throwing the watch against the walls. He hadn’t learned to read it, but he had learned how the parts of the day corresponded with the symbols on the watch. He knew sunset began when it showed 18:00, and it ended around 18:20. It was only 18:02 so, for the first time since Minhyun left, he actively went searching for the soft light of the Sun as it set. He hoped for one that made the sky blush, his favourites. He absolutely didn’t want the lilac skies, which reminded him of Minhyun, the hero’s mouth in agape during their first shared sunset that had led to many others.

Pink lights hit his eyes, and coloured the tears that flowed from his eyes. Maybe he would move on from Minhyun as well, he had done it before. He knew he would need many sunsets, but time was one thing he had lots of.

Helios hadn’t made his way out of the sky when the outline of a ship appeared on the horizon, big sails playing with the wind and painting on the pink canvas like the clouds above. Seongwoo cursed the Olympus under his breath. It was too soon, way too soon. Maybe this was it, maybe they were overworking his heart so he had a myocardial infarction and finally rested, because he wouldn’t go through another goodbye in less than a century.

It was then, he noticed something oddly familiar on the embarkation. The sails looked familiar, and there was something calling, like it _belonged_ to him. Magic could have that effect, he remembered. There was only one boat impregnated with his magic, and he fell on his knees.

Minhyun had died, that was the first thing he could think about. He had died on his way to the Camp, and someone had stolen his ship, finding Ogygia in the process. There was no other way for the boat to be back. Maybe Minhyun had died and the ship just went back for Seongwoo, like some kind of magic pull. Or maybe…

He didn’t allow himself to finish the last what if, hope had no room in his heart right then. Not after everything he had been through.

He had gone crazy, he thought when he heard Minhyun’s voice in the distance. It was undoubtedly his, the honey quality to it as entrancing as ever, wrapping itself around Seongwoo’s heart, filling his ears until everything he could hear was the chanting of his name like a mantra. The sail kept on coming closer, and he didn’t want to look. Whatever had to find him, would do it whether he saw it coming or not. His imagination was persistent, but now it had added some annoyance to the angelic vocal sound he loved, and he was _not_ happy about it, nor about how it repeated his name with more insistence.

“Look at me for Athena’s sake!”

The voice had sounded way too real, way too close. With his head facing the sand, he opened his eyes, a pair of white shoes he had never seen in front of them. Intrigued, he followed the figure. Long legs covered by black cloth –jeans, he remembered—, a chest where a white shirt that read Reebok hung, with white somewhat bulky and familiar arms framing it. And then, he dared looking up, just when the man kneeled, coming face to face. Fox-like eyes gazing into his, and he knew those way too well.

“Did I manage to create life out of sand? Did I finally go crazy?”

It was Minhyun in front of him, the other’s hands cupping his face as if he was the one who couldn’t believe Seongwoo was there. He had no idea his mind could recreate the warmth that the demigod gave him. He didn’t know a brain had the power to create something you had never seen, like the _adoration_ in Minhyun’s face as he helped both Seongwoo and himself up, Minhyun’s hands now feeling Seongwoo everywhere. How real could a faked touch be, because he felt the scorching sensation wherever Minhyun’s hand brushed his skin.

“I’m real, you’re real. I’m here, I made it. I made it.”

Seongwoo wanted to believe it _so bad_. Minhyun was pleading for him to believe him, desperation in his voice. It wasn’t until the demigod’s lips were on his that he snapped out of it. Minhyun was kissing him with hunger, like he was finally allowing himself to let loose. Like he was finally giving himself to Seongwoo and wanted Seongwoo in return. He bit on Seongwoo’s lips, wild, fiery, and the titan lost himself, tasting the love in Minhyun’s lips. He became brave, sliding his tongue inside Minhyun, as if he was trying to get as much as he could. Seongwoo was slightly softer than the other, his lips melding to the demigod’s with ease. All he could feel was Minhyun, his vision, hearing, touch, smell and taste, all devoted to the man who could not be there but somehow was. He kissed him to ground himself, and bit on Minhyun’s lips to believe the other was real.

When they parted, both of them were breathless, Minhyun still looking at Seongwoo with something that bordered _veneration_.

“Seongwoo, I had a whole speech for you, but I have to admit that you clouded my mind. In fact, it’s been a while since you’ve clouded my mind and all of myself. I’ve been feeling you in every little thing, I didn’t notice at first, deeming it curiosity. And then, you made the world dance and sing, myself included. I didn’t realise, but I felt right then and there. The point of no return was, however, when you let yourself be around me. I felt so happy, so confident around you, you were just taking over my heart without permission. Without a warning. I would’ve let you anyway. I hate myself for leaving, but you know what? “

Minhyun paused, walking closer to Seongwoo, even if they were not even centimetres apart. The demigod pressed his forehead against his.

“Here I am now, in front of you, trembling legs and rushed words. And I can’t believe my eyes because I’ve missed you so much, and I’ve seen you in my dreams and I don’t know if this is real or I just fell asleep on my ship, the last thing I remember vividly is a rosy sunset like those that lit up your faces with a cerise tone that made my heart flutter. Maybe I died, and this is my own personal Elysium. But I’m choosing to believe you are real, and I kept my promise and came back for you.”

Seongwoo had his heart tied up in a knot.

“What happens now it’s up to you, because I did my research you know? I spoke with my director, I spoke with my mother, I spoke with my friends. They all agreed, there was one way to free you. Even though everyone said it was impossible. They had told me that for you to get out, someone would have to find Ogygia twice, but no one could. I just said, ‘Watch me’. Are you watching me, mom?”

Minhyun chuckled, it sounded like victory.

“What I mean is, I’m here, and you can leave with me. However, there is a downside, because nothing is ever easy with the Gods. If you choose to leave with me, you will be a mortal, like me. So, I can’t offer you a forever, Seongwoo, the only thing I can offer you is myself, and I hope that is enough.”

Since he couldn’t speak, he just closed the distance between them, his lips pressing against Minhyun’s. He wasn’t kissing him like he was looking for earth, or like he wanted to devour him whole. He was kissing him like he had many kissed to come, which they did.

The last Ogygia sunset to ever set in front of Seongwoo’s eyes was long gone when Minhyun started the engines. That time, no magic wall stopped him from leaving, his eyes set on the outline of the island until it disappeared from his sight and they were greeted by the Sun, shining brightly upon their heads. Minhyun had taken Seongwoo’s hand, bringing him closer, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“Welcome home.”

In Minhyun’s arms, he did feel like home.

                                             

 

          »»————-　the end　————-««

 

 

_epilogue: Olympus._

 

ATHENA.

 

As much as he loved his sister, Aphrodite had an undeniable knack for the dramatic and big finales. She also had, obviously, a fixation for great loves that break curses, she probably was the reason behind those tales of sleeping princesses that woke up with a true love’s kiss. When it was his son the one on the receiving end of Aphrodite’s games, she hated those likes of her.

However, and as much as it pained her, she had to admit the pain had been kind of worth it, judging by the smile Minhyun wore now everywhere.

“Aren’t you glad I sent him to Ogygia in the first place? As I repeated over and over, I sent him there for a reason.”

Aphrodite appeared into her view like she had appeared in front of Minhyun, long chocolatey hair and doe eyed. It was a simple beauty, but it may be Athena’s favourite look on his sister as well. Maybe his son took after her.

“Ah, yes, you always had a soft spot for Seongwoo.”

Aphrodite didn’t answer, so Athena continued.

“I never knew why you were _so_ keen on saving him, but you did.”

The brunette hit her arm, playfully. A grin expanding on her lips.

“I did it for your son! He seemed, erm, bored.”

Athena knew that not even Aphrodite herself believed that. Her and Seongwoo were born around the same time, and had met before any war broke, bonding over how much they relished on the beauty of the world. Aphrodite had been softer back then, and probably Seongwoo too. More innocent, less hurt. Athena was sure the boy reminded the other of golden eras, so, she would let it slip. That, and his son being actually glowing. Maybe his sister was right about soulmates, and they would make you whole, not because you were incomplete before, but because they would bring out something of you that was hidden --just not inside yourself—.

“Sure, you did.”

Athena answered absentmindedly, not missing the way Aphrodite’s lips curved into a self-satisfied grin. She was hopeless. Athena shook her head, and took a look over Camp Half-Blood.

It was winter again, almost a year and a half since Minhyun had made it back from Ogygia –twice, she could feel the pinch of pride on her chest— and Seongwoo with him. It had been funny the early months, the titan not accustomed to modern times, but everyone did their best to help him. Minhyun had made sure of it, all he had to do was introduce the other to his friends. He had come to her about how nervous he was upon Seongwoo and Daniel’s reunion, she had heard him out, and made sure to send him a wave of tranquillity –thanks Hebe—. There was nothing to worry about, because they had both let go, and actually became really good friends. Minhyun teased his friends jokingly about replacing him, and they would get into their usual friendly banters (Jinyoung would always say that of course, because he needed a better big brother; only to come a second later to reassure Minhyun that he would be his favourite forever and ever).

A month into his return, Minhyun had wanted to return to the Hwang household, and had taken Seongwoo back with him. He had been nervous about introducing him as his boyfriend, the word very foreign on his lips. However, his family had loved the other, partly because they could see how happy the man made Minhyun, and partly because Seongwoo was pretty charming and witty, even ganging up with Sujin to make fun of Minhyun, the boy’s older sister showing him embarrassing baby pictures and all (‘ _That’s unfair because you_ don’t _have baby pictures’_ Minhyun had pouted. _‘I have baby_ paintings _, way worse than this and I’m sure you’ve seen them because they’re kind of everywhere around the Camp’s cantina.’_ Minhyun had laughed so loud, Sujin and his boyfriend Aron had to go downstairs to tell them off. _‘Not you Seongwoo, sweetie, my brother is the only dumbass of the two.’_ Said Sujin. _‘You’re not a dumbass either.’_ Said Aron before trailing after Sujin, Minhyun finally accepting that Aron was a cool guy.)

Then, they had come back, making some more seasonal visits, living a very funny Christmas and enjoying every festivity like it was new –because they were, for Seongwoo—.

Right then, Minhyun and Seongwoo sat inside Hecate’s cabin, where Seongwoo had been admitted to, due to his outstanding magic ability (and pre-existing admiration for him that existed inside house number twenty). His son was being his usual self, which meant he was clinging on Seongwoo like his life depended on it, legs placed atop Seongwoo’s. His head resting on the other’s shoulder, a posture that shouldn’t be humanly possible but Minhyun pulled off with ease. The former god passed his hand through the raven-haired’s head, chatting about everything and anything. They had fallen into a routine, but it wasn’t monotonous and boring, and their love was noticeable even for her, who watched them from Olympus.

The sweet scene was cut by Daehwi’s screams, who walked into the room covering his eyes and screaming atop of his lungs something along the lines of ‘THIS IS TOO MUCH PDA AND THERE’S MINORS, NAMELY ME, AROUND! EW EW EW’. Both Minhyun and Seongwoo had laughed it off, and after politely telling Daehwi to “get used to it”, they softly locked their lips and shrieked when Daehwi stormed out of the room cursing under his breath.

Athena had then looked up. Just that once, she would admit Aphrodite had done well.

 

  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> well!!! this was all... thank you so much for reading this, and if you want to talk to me you can catch me on twt at
> 
> [here](https://twitter.com/rosyemperor), [, here](https://twitter.com/rosychoerrys)
> 
> or at @winkscloud (yes... perhaps i have too many accounts!)


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